Werewolf Worries
by Ava Miranda Dakedavra
Summary: This girl shows up, completely out of nowhere, and is determined to change his life. "Why me?" Remus asked. She smiled, "I know you, Remus."
1. The Potions Partner

**This is a different turn of my oneshot **_**The Potions Partner**_** – but that's more Hermione and Fred, rather than Remus and Hermione. But this one is more about the latter. It'll start off the same, but there'll (hopefully) be more chapters. **

**Also, I want a better title for this, so if any of you have any suggestions, please feel free to share.**

* * *

Remus glanced at his Potions partner. She had dark brown hair tumbling in thick curls down her back, her eyes trained on Slughorn as he babbled on at James and Sirius about rules and responsibility and not blowing up potions. Her mouth twitched in a smile once or twice.

But Remus should've known her. He should've known this girl because they were sitting in seventh year Advanced Potions. He should've known this girl because she was sitting there wearing a Gryffindor tie.

But he didn't.

And that's what confused him.

What confused him more was when she turned and smiled warmly at him, looking as if this was just a regular day and as if she'd known him for seven years. But neither was the case.

Merlin, he was going to get a headache in this class.

* * *

"I don't remember her," James shrugged once Remus brought up the girl, "She doesn't even look that familiar."

"I'll fix that," Sirius grinned before sitting up from leaning on James' chair and putting a hand to magnify his voice, "OY! YOU!"

The girl looked up from _Hogwarts: A History_ and blinked innocently at him.

"What's your name?" he called out, making Remus slap his hand to his blushing face as James chuckled.

She smiled back and closed her book, using her finger as a bookmark, "Hermione." Remus automatically remembered the name from a Shakespearean play, and remembered that he'd loved the name when he was younger, always telling his mum that he'd marry some girl named Hermione.

"Hermione! What's your last name?" Sirius continued on.

"Granger," she answered back simply, smiling a little.

"Should we know you?" he questioned.

She shook her head, "No."

"Okay," he grinned, both of them turning back to what they were doing previously, "Answer your question?"

Remus frowned at him, uncovering his face, "Merlin, you're an idiot."

He then tackled him and hugged him as tightly as he could, mushily calling out to the entire Common Room that he loved him as he ordered to be let go.

* * *

Remus groaned as he rubbed his eyes, glaring at the curtain of the Hospital Wing. He hated full moons. He hated his lycanthropy. He'd hated it since he was five. He'd hated it ever since he watched his mother break down in the middle of the living room, crying about how she couldn't fix her baby. He'd hated it ever since he'd started Hogwarts. The only time he was mildly okay with it was when James, Sirius and Peter accepted the fact that he was a werewolf and began their task of becoming Animagi.

But he'd never actually _liked_ it.

He blinked in surprise as the curtain tore open, leaving Hermione to smile simply at him, a glass vial in her hand as she stepped closer to the bed.

"'Lo," she said as he scrambled to a sitting position.

"Err…hello," he said, eyeing her warily (and blushing just a bit), "Ummm…."

"I brought this for you," she held out the vial, "Don't put sugar in it."

"What is it?" he asked, eyeing the murky liquid sloshing around merrily in the glass.

But when he looked up, he realized that she'd left as soon as he'd taken the glass. He popped the stopper and sniffed it, wrinkling his nose at it. He glanced dully at the clock, counting down the moments to when he'd become a wolf, before sighing and tilting his head back to take it. He coughed as soon as it went down, wincing and setting the vial on the nightstand. He waited a few moments, but after nothing happened, he slumped against the pillow and sighed, going back to glaring at the curtain.

* * *

Remus blinked his eyes open, staring in shock at James and Sirius as Peter began throwing clothes at the teenager still lying in the middle of the Forbidden Forest.

"What was that?" he questioned as he sat up, taking the clothing and looking at them as if they might have the answer.

"I have no clue," Sirius shook his head before snorting, "Oy, put some pants on, will you?"

"I mean," he stood up and struggled to hop on one leg and stuff the other one in the pants leg, "That was just – "

"Wild," James finished, looking warily up at the moon, "I mean, you acted as if – "

"I was," Remus said, successfully putting on some pants and standing there barefoot and shirtless, "What happened?"

A cough made them turn and blink as Hermione leaned against a tree, smiling at them pleasantly and holding out the empty glass vial that Remus had left in the Hospital Wing.

"Wolfsbane potion," she said, tossing it lightly to the shirtless teenager, "It relieves some of the effects of lycanthropy and allows the werewolf to control his or her thoughts while transformed."

"Pretty advanced stuff," James crossed his arms over his chest and frowned at her, "You're not from here are you?"

She smirked back, knowing exactly what he meant, "No, I'm not."

"Why are you here?" Sirius questioned.

She shrugged, swaying a little on the trunk, "Spreading some good in places that aren't mine to be in."

"Why me?" Remus asked.

She smiled, "I know you, Remus. Not from here, though, later on." She stood up, walking a little away before grinning and turning back, "Oh, by the way, nice abs." She winked as Remus did a double take to find that he still didn't have a shirt, and giggled once he scrambled to shove one over his head.

* * *

"So – Granger," she looked startled as Sirius' arm crept over her shoulders, "Are you, by any chance, seeing anybody?"

She blinked at him before looking dully at Remus as he sat down across from her at the table, "Is he for real?"

"I don't really know anymore," he sighed, shaking his head as James sat down on the other side of her and chuckled.

"Sirius Black, if you don't get your arm off of my person, I'll hex it off," she frowned at him, "Do I make myself clear?"

"But your person is hot!" he exclaimed, making her blink at him in shock before going into a fit of giggles.

"Oh great, Padfoot, look what you've done," James huffed, "You've broken her!"

"I've just never heard that adjective used to describe me," she laughed, grinning over at Remus, "Smart, bookish, yeah, I've heard that but…." She went into another fit of giggles, shrugging off Sirius's arm as she did. "No, I'm not dating anybody, and the idea of me dating you anywhere in the future looks hopelessly bleak."

"Damn it," he cursed, frowning down at his plate before grinning, "Oh well, there's always other fish in the sea."

Hermione rolled her eyes and smiled, shaking her head before standing up and leaving the Marauders behind.

Sirius smirked across at Remus, "See, Moony? Your little girly's available."

James chuckled as Remus glared across the table at him.

"Oh shut up, Padfoot," he said before getting up and following Hermione's lead.

Sirius chuckled as soon as he was out of earshot, grinning over at his best friend, "He didn't deny it."

James rolled his eyes and grinned back, "Padfoot, leave 'em alone. Moony might not appreciate it, and I don't know about Hermione enough to know if she even likes him back. Just let it lie, Sirius."

He rolled his eyes back at him, shaking his head, "Look, Prongsie, how many dates has Moony ever been on?"

Peter and James both had to count it out aloud before deciding on none.

"Exactly," he crossed his arms over his chest, "And do you know why?"

"He…doesn't brush his hair?" Peter prompted.

"Well, okay, he doesn't do that, but it's because he's afraid of girls finding out about _you know what_ and being scared of him. Hermione's the only girl who knows and won't push him away. Hell, do you remember what she did for him?"

James rubbed his chin, looking down at the tabletop before wincing, "If you're wrong, Padfoot…."

"I'm not wrong, I'm – "

"I mean if this is just some big joke – "

"I'm not joking, I'm serious!"

James's eyes narrowed, "Did you do the Sirius-serious thing again?"

He blinked back, "I didn't even notice, actually. I meant the other one this time."

"Oh," he said blankly before going back on topic, "Look, just…don't let him find out it's you, alright? He might not appreciate it."

Sirius beamed before mussing up James's hair and bounding out of the Great Hall with a loud "whoop!"

* * *

**I'll break it off there so I have more to write about later. **

**But if you're interested in Fred and Hermione as well, you can go check out **_**The Potions Partner**_** as well, it's still on my profile. And remember that I could use some help with the naming of this as well. **

**Thanks for everything,**

**Ava**


	2. The Housemates

**So, what with the titles coming in, I've decided that I'll put up a poll when I get around ten, and then narrow it down to three and have a poll between them. That seems fair, right?**

**Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Hermione looked skeptically at Sirius's hand, which was once again around her shoulders. Remus was in the same position, looking warily at his friend as he grinned at the two.

"So – bookworms! What's new today in the world of learning?" he questioned.

"Nothing," Remus answered slowly, eyes narrowing, "Padfoot, what - ?"

"I say that we need to welcome you to Hogwarts," Sirius turned to Hermione with a slow grin.

She arched an eyebrow dully at him, "I've already been at Hogwarts. I started when I was eleven, just like everybody else who has ever been to Hogwarts."

He faltered at that before continuing, "Well, not in a time when the Marauders are present!"

She pulled away from him as Remus began to lightly hit his face with his book. "Any pranks on me, Sirius Black, and I'll - !"

"No pranks, my dear," he grinned, although she wouldn't buy it, "Promise."

She frowned at him, grabbing her books and standing up before turning to Remus, "Whenever you want to try it is fine, I just have to write down the ingredients and instructions."

He grinned up at her, nodding, "Thank you."

She rolled her eyes, smiling back, "You don't have to thank me."

"Too bad, I think he's gonna," Sirius snorted.

She sighed before walking up the girls' staircase. Lily glanced back after her, a confused look on her face before sighing and getting ready to do her least favorite thing. Talk to the Marauders.

"Hey, do you know her?" she asked the two on the couch.

"No, who is she?" Sirius blinked at her.

Lily snorted and turned her attention onto Remus, "Where'd she come from?"

"I think she was homeschooled before," Remus answered, suddenly finding the cover of his book fascinating.

"But she's Muggleborn," Alice spoke up.

"I don't know," he frowned at the group of girls looking curiously at him.

Emmeline snorted, grinning over at him, "Oh please, Remus, you were practically ogling her the entire time she was sitting next to you in Potions! Surely you _must_ know _something_ about her!"

"I wasn't _ogling_ her!" This was kind of a huge lie. He had been glancing back at Hermione quite a few times during class (if you asked Emmeline, she'd say that she counted twenty-three times, and that was only once she'd noticed) but only out of curiosity of what she was like, where she'd come from exactly, why she'd decided to help _him_. He didn't know much about her, and he was simply curious.

Alice giggled at this as Lily grinned and rolled her eyes, "No offense or anything, Remus, but – umm – you kind of were." Alice giggled again once he glared at her a little.

"Remus, a Flobberworm would've been able to see that you were totally checking her out," Emmeline laughed, dropping into the seat Hermione had just vacated. "Does our widdle Remy have a crush on the pretty girl?" she cooed, making Sirius chuckle at her.

"Stuff it, Vance, I do not," he argued as Alice and Lily followed their friend, Lily perched on the arm of the couch next to Emmeline as Alice sat on the coffee table. All three of them seemed to be holding a look of sympathy for him. It was ticking him off a little, needless to say.

"Ooh, poor baby," Alice is suddenly by his side, patting his hair, "You poor thing. Don't even know!"

"Alice, when's the next time you'll see Frank?" Remus asked dully.

"Umm, whenever the next Hogsmeade weekend is," she pulled away skeptically, "Why?"

"Somebody remind me to turn her hair pink then," he said, making her smack his shoulder as she huffed.

"Pink's an ugly color, don't ever use it on me!" she ordered, frowning down at him.

He laughed up at her as the others did too, "Alice, you're such a bubbly, _girly_ person – how can you hate the color pink?"

"Four syllables, Remus Lupin," she declared as she stood up to glare into his eyes, "_Pepto-Bismol_."

Lily and Remus laughed louder at this, Sirius and Emmeline exchanging confused glances with each other.

* * *

Hermione was chewing on the end of her quill, and he wondered how she wasn't choking on it as James had done multiple times in the past. He'd had to switch to Muggle pens because of that habit, which annoyed Sirius to no end because of the rapid _clickity-clickity-click!_ James did with the end of it when he wasn't chewing on it.

"How do you do that?" James questioned to her, popping up at her table in the library, which made Remus blink as he hadn't noticed he'd left his.

"Do what?" she blinked at him.

"Chew on the end of your quill," he ran his hands through his hair and stopped midway, narrowing his eyes, "Tell me your secret."

Hermione blinked at the thing in her hand before shrugging, "A habit I kept after I switched from Muggle pens."

"I get feathers stuck in my throat though! How do you do that?"

"I use a charm to make the fluff stick to it, and then a charm to make it look…err…plume-ish."

"You just solved the Great Quill versus Pen Debate of '71 to '77," James told her before saluting and bowing, "Thank you."

She laughed and nodded as James marched back to Remus, where he was hiding behind his book with a wince. James suddenly clapped him on the back, making him look up and see the grin he had on his face.

"You definitely need to go out with her – I think she needs to sit down with the Marauders from time to time," he grinned before walking away and leaving Remus to wonder _why_ people liked bugging him.

* * *

**…It went downhill, I think. I'm sleepy, so let's blame it on that. **

**Umm…let's see**

**Title suggestions**

**A few other suggestions if you want**

**…**

**Thanks for reading! I keep zoning out as the day goes on. *shrug* **

**Love,**

**Ava**


	3. The Flying Instructor

**…Meh.**

* * *

Hermione frowned at her sheets, cursing whatever had made her wake up at _two in the morning_. She sighed, sitting up and running her fingers through her curls, peeking out through the curtains around her bed to glance at the girls. She blinked when she saw somebody moving around, as this was _not_ one of the girls. She grabbed her wand from the night table, sat up on her knees and pointed it at them, whispering out a very harsh "_Stupefy!_"

They fell to the floor with a thud, making Emmeline sit up with a gasp as Hermione dropped down from her bed, padding over to the figure as she flicked the lights on.

"Sirius!" she growled as she caught sight of him, "What're you doing in here?"

"Dammit, Granger!" Sirius growled back, "You ruined it!"

"Ruined _what_?"

"My _prank!_"

"Do you have any idea – any _sense_ of what could've happened if I'd – do you even care that you - ?" she growled again, glaring at him before glancing at Lily and Alice's beds to make sure they weren't awake, "Get out of here, before they wake up. Lily will more than likely kill you, and I'm surprised Emmeline hasn't already."

"Too shocked that you really just did that," she whispered.

"No," Sirius sat up and crossed his arms over his chest.

"And why is _that_?"

"I haven't finished my prank yet," he sniffed as her eyes narrowed.

* * *

"Get your bloody sodding friend and keep him _out_ of our dorms!"

"Hermione – ow, Hermione, that's my ear, I need that!" Sirius complained as James flicked on the light and Remus blinked wearily at them.

"No you don't – I know a man with only one ear, and he's doing just fine without it," she growled before shoving him into the floor, "Next time, at least have the _sense_ to put silencing charms on our beds."

"How'd you even get up there, anyway?" James questioned.

"You remember when we were eleven and we visited that Muggle park, and I climbed up the slide the wrong way 'cause I thought Muggles just liked to go down the stairs?" At his sigh and nodded, he grinned, "It came in handy."

"We're very sorry, Hermione," Remus told her as she frowned at his dog-like friend, arms over her chest.

"I'm not!" Sirius said brightly. She growled and he winced, leaning back and away from her.

James caught this motion and seemed highly amused, "Padfoot…are you _scared_ of her?"

"No!" he exclaimed, highly affronted.

"You should be," she said drily before padding out of the boys' dorms. Sirius huffed once she left, standing up and putting a hand on his hip, his other hand wagging a finger at the floor.

"_Do you have any idea – any _sense_ of what could've happened if I'd – do you even care that you - ?_" he mimicked before snorting, tugging his shoe off and throwing it at his bed, mumbling to himself before stopping as he pulled the other one off. "What'd she mean by that?"

"Mean by what?" Remus asked with a yawn, burrowing back into his pillow.

"'Any sense of what could've happened if I'd'…what?" he dropped his foot now, holding his other shoe as he stared at his bed in thought before turning to his two awake friends; Peter had been asleep the entire time. "You don't think…."

"Think what, exactly?" Remus was sitting up now, as was James.

Sirius turned out the window, furrowing his brows, staying silent.

James was thinking now as well, "Maybe she's had to fight a lot. Dad…well, sometimes he bolts up with his wand out, and curses the same lamp in their room."

Remus blinked at them, "She's…you don't think she's been in a _war_, do you? She's so little…how?"

"She may be little, Remus," Sirius turned back to his friend, rubbing his chest, "But she packs a hell of a punch."

Remus only nodded slowly, frowning as Sirius went back to getting ready for bed again.

* * *

"Flying lessons? Honestly?" Hermione hissed, mostly to herself as she stared down at the broom incredulously. James and Sirius looked very bored, while Alice looked almost as pale as she did. Emmeline was bouncing on her toes, Remus looking highly amused at her as Lily tried to get her to stop.

Hermione frowned down at the broom as it yet again refused to meet her hand. James and Sirius were already waiting patiently for further instructions, Emmeline twirling the broom around on her shoulder. Alice squeaked when it flew up to her, running off towards the green houses as Peter simply stared down at it. Lily gave a victorious shout when it finally met her hand, leaving Hermione the only one trying – and failing – to get her broom to meet her commands. Remus was poking at the twigs on the end, glancing back at her as she gave a frustrated growl and smirked, leaning over to whisper to her.

"Try saying 'please,'" he told her, making her look incredulously at him.

She sighed and rolled her eyes, frowning down at the broom, "Up, please." She looked absolutely livid when it floated up and stopped in her hand. Remus bit his lip and grinned at her as she frowned up at him. She poked him in the side, "Shut up."

"Don't like flying?" he guessed.

"Flying is fine – it's the heights I hate."

The flying instructor for this time was a young looking man, brown hair and green eyes, with a Scottish accent. He reminded Hermione very much of Oliver Wood.

"Alrigh', who wants tae go 'nd get Miss Prewitt?" Avery asked.

"I'll go!" Hermione raised her hand, looking desperate to get away from any idea of flying, but Avery shot her down with a chuckle.

"Nah, Granger, I think ya need this lesson," he grinned before pointing at James with the tip of his broom, "Potter. You go."

"Can I take my broom?" he asked hopefully.

"No."

James's face fell and he handed his broom to Sirius, walking off and grumbling about him. Avery chuckled again and turned back to Hermione, "Ya Muggleborn?"

She shifted a little, aware that Slytherins were glaring at her, "Yes, I am."

"Ahh – 'fraid o' heights too, I bet," he smiled before ruffling up her hair, much like Oliver had done when she'd told Harry or Ron off for something, "Don' worry, ya'll get used tae it."

"Avery," she said once he began to pull away, "Is that your last name?"

"Ahh, no," he looked puzzled by this, "Avery's mah first name. Mah las' name's Wood."

"Ahh," she nodded, smiling at him until he smiled uncertainly back and nodded. She kept the smile and rolled her eyes at herself, whispering under her breath, "Of course it is."

* * *

**Just pretend that they go through this every year to "keep their skills in check." **

**Really, I just wanted to write Hermione getting frustrated over a broom with one of the boys giving a simple answer. **

**I have no idea why all of these are so _short_. *shrugging***

**Reviews are loved, appreciated and welcome. Also – what do you think of the new title? I got tired of seeing the Potions Assignment on it with The Potions Partner a few spaces down. Confused the crap out of me.**

**Anyway!**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	4. The Evil Plant

**Of _course_ Hermione's going to get back at Sirius! Psht. It's like you people have never read anything I've ever written. (Although…that might be the case.)**

* * *

Remus tried to keep the serious face that morning. He honestly did. Even James tried but ended up hiding it behind his hand. Sirius was completely oblivious to the fact that he had whiskers and a nose drawn onto his face.

"Mornin'," he mumbled, stumbling into the bathroom the four shared.

Remus and James sniggered at each other once he wasn't in hearing range, but straightened up once he stormed out of the dorms. They blinked at each other until Sirius came back and dropped Hermione onto Remus's bed as she giggled at him.

"Why the bloody hell do I have whiskers, Hermione?" he demanded as she laughed.

She smiled, sitting up and wrapping her arms around her knees, "Maybe you need to shave more often."

"_Granger!_" he growled, making her roll her eyes and grin.

"Well, Emmeline and I found that _thing_ you were trying to sneak into Alice's trunk," she reached a hand up into her hair to pick the tangles out, "And we felt that it shouldn't have gone unnoticed."

"Unnoticed?" he spluttered, "You _Stunned_ me!"

She waved it away, "That was for sneaking into our dorms."

"Oh yeah – little Miss Solider Girl," he snorted as she froze, "I forgot."

"What?" she asked, her voice hard.

"You're twitchy," he shrugged, "You act like somebody'll hex you at any available moment."

"You been in a war?" James asked, stepping forward.

She dropped down from Remus's bed, frowning, "I don't have to deal with this."

"It's best to clear the air now!" Sirius stopped her before she reached the door, "We'll find out eventually."

She took a deep breath and released it slowly, turning back to look at them unemotionally, "Yes, I was in a war. I skipped out on seventh year to be in it."

"Why?" Peter questioned.

She shrugged, letting a small smile onto her face, "I had to make sure my boys were alright."

"Way to go, Sirius," Remus cut through the silence, "You made everything awkward now."

"It's only _awkward_ if you _make it_ awkward!" he exclaimed.

"It's awkward!" Hermione called out as she walked out of their room.

"Told you," Remus grinned before frowning, "I want to know what time she's from. How long is this going to last?"

"I want to know if they won it," James said instead.

"I want to know how she snuck into our dorms last night to draw _whiskers_ on my face!" Sirius growled as he stomped back into the bathroom.

"Who's her boys?" Peter questioned instead, making them blink at him.

"Excellent question, Peter!" James exclaimed before clapping Remus on the back, "Something Moony here is going to have to ask her!"

"What?" he blinked before frowning, "No, I'm not!"

"You gotta, Moony!" he pleaded, "There's too many questions! And besides – you're the one she likes the most!"

"Says who?"

Peter snorted, but clamped his hands over his mouth when Remus glared at him.

"Err – mate, are you _really_ asking that?" Sirius asked, smiling a little as he walked back into the room, free of whiskers.

"Aren't you supposed to be the smart one?" James joked, dodging the shoe that was lobbed at his head.

"I'm not going to bug her about it – so leave it alone," he frowned, "She's been helping me out a lot, and I'd hate to scare her away."

The three sighed collectively but nodded dully at him, sad to see their questions go unanswered.

* * *

Hermione started to get suspicious when James asked her to be his Herbology partner instead of Lily. Remus, confused by this as well, asked Lily instead when Emmeline paired up with Alice. Sirius and Peter were left to fend off their plant together, Professor Sprout keeping a close eye on them.

"So – ahh, what you said this morning," James began as he began to pat the plant, as they'd been instructed. "We've got a few questions."

"I figured," she shrugged, scratching the plant under a bud, where it began to purr.

"What time are you from?"

"Nineties."

"Ahh," he nodded, "And, ahh, did you win?"

She smiled, "Yes, we did."

He grinned before looking confused once more, "You said something about your boys…who are they?"

She froze, staring at the plant before sighing, "Well, that one, I can't completely say. But one's Harry, and one's Ron."

James blinked at her before leaning closer to her, "Harry's my kid, isn't he?"

She blinked, her mouth open at him, trying to shape an argument or a question when he smirked.

"I always swore up and down that I'd name my son after my grandfather," he said, feeding the plant, "His name was Harold. And the only reason I can see of you being _here, _rather than when You-Know-Who started turning evil, is because you have some tie to here."

She only gaped at him.

He grinned, "So – were you two just _friends_ or - ?"

She blinked before scoffing, "Ew, no. He's like my brother."

"Ahh – because that would've been weird otherwise."

"Incredibly," she folded her arms, "But Ron and I did date for all of an hour."

"Hmm," he hummed, "That's got to be some record."

"A very sad one, but I suppose."

"Hey," he bumped her hip with his, grinning, "Maybe you can get a new one here."

She arched an eyebrow, "What makes you think I'm going to stay? What if I wanted to go back home?"

"Because you gave us your real name," he pointed out, "And you're talking to us rather than avoiding us like the plague."

She sighed, smiling somewhat sadly as she started working on getting the pollen from the plant, "Like I said, I've got to make sure my boys are alright."

"You're a good friend, Granger," he noted, making her smile back at him before he yelped and snatched his hand back from the plant, glaring at it, "The plant, however, is not."

She laughed.

* * *

**…I really can't find an explanation. But I figured Hermione and James would be close, because to Hermione he's the closest thing to Harry she's got, and I figured James is the kind of person that, if you're missing family, he's going to practically adopt you into his. **

**Or, I dunno. That's just me.**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	5. The Comforting Desk

**Song of the Day: "Bright Lights and Cityscapes" by Sara Bareilles.**

* * *

Hermione let out a short huff of air, frowning down at her toes dully before wiggling them against the cold stone floor, smiling before inching closer to the light, sitting there with her eyes closed, facing the moon.

If anybody had just walked into the Astronomy Tower, they'd be very confused as to why Hermione Granger was still sitting in her uniform, sans socks, shoes and sweater, to sit on the cold floor with her white dress shirt sleeves rolled up to her elbows and her feet planted on the floor.

However, the one person that did didn't question it. Instead he dropped his bag by the door and walked over to her, smiling down at her as she looked up at him.

"Why?" was all he asked in an amused tone.

She shrugged back, "Why not?"

He sighed, smiling, as he dropped down next to her, making her reach over to rub between his shoulder blades. He sighed, more tired now, and dropped his head on her shoulders, closing his eyes.

"Harry, everything'll work out," Hermione promised.

"Hope so," he muttered sleepily before yawning, making Hermione wince when she heard his jaw pop. "La' yoo, 'Ermiknee," he said in the yawn.

She smiled, pecking his crazy hair, "Love you too, Harry."

Hermione gasped when she was jolted awake, Remus blinking and sitting back on his heels as she looked around warily.

"You fell asleep in the Common Room," he whispered before looking puzzled, "Who's Harry and why do you love him?"

She slapped her hand over her mouth and blinked, "What time is it?"

"Somewhere around three, I think," he said as she sat up, "Who's Harry?"

"A friend," she said distractedly, squinting at her watch in the dark.

"Like…how?"

"Like you guys," she muttered, shaking her watch close to her ear, "Does this even work?"

"I can hear it just fine – it works," he said, making her nod and squint again before sighing and giving up completely.

"Whatever. Might as well flop into bed anyway," she shrugged before standing up, smiling at Remus as he rose as well, "Thanks for waking me. Goodnight."

He smiled back as she left, "Goodnight." He made his way over to the boys' staircase, where James was grinning as he was covered in shadows.

"Why do you care who she loves, Moony?" he asked teasingly, making Remus roll his eyes and punch his shoulder as he chuckled.

* * *

"Are we really?" Hermione asked in an amused tone as she and Remus looked at the pages of the Potions book, smiling a little at the pearly white liquid shown on the picture.

"It's his favorite," Remus told her dully, "We have to do it every year." He gave a loud sigh, "It's very embarrassing."

"Instead of simply _brewing_ Amortentia, this year you're going to be making your own special brand," Slughorn announced, making several eyebrows shoot up as mouths dropped open. "You may use the basic ingredients, but be creative! And hopefully none explosive!"

Remus made a very lovely annoyed expression before thunking his head on their desk and making Hermione hide her laugh and grin behind her hand.

* * *

Remus stood frozen as Hermione glared at the group in the Common Room, standing up from the couch as she stepped towards them. He really wanted to point out that she'd seemed to have lost quite a great deal of her hair, but figured she already knew.

"Sirius Black," she growled, making him pale just a little and step behind Remus, "You complete and utter _prat!_"

"You did that?" James asked, incredulous.

"I just meant to turn it lime green temporarily," he admitted.

"Stop hiding behind me," Remus fidgeted, "Now, Hermione – "

"No, don't you _dare_ try to talk me out of being mad at him!" she glared at Remus now, "He cut off inches of my hair, Remus! My _hair!_"

"I understand that, and I realize that you're very attached to your hair, but I was just – "

"Boys!" she huffed instead, rolling her eyes and going back up to the girls' staircase.

"What did I do?" Remus found himself calling out to her.

* * *

**…Meh! It's two in the morning and my sunburn has started to peel. I like picking it off, but hate how much it hurts now.**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	6. The Silent Treatment

**Sorry, sorry, I didn't know you liked last chapter so much! Haha, let me fix that right now, hm?**

* * *

Hermione hadn't spoken to the four for a month. She'd given Remus the potion without a word, and when he'd tried to beg her forgiveness for whatever it was they'd all seemed to have done, she just walked away and ignored him. That both worried and angered him. He hadn't done anything to deserve that! And then he was worried as to why he cared so much.

Remus was sitting up in his bed, up late with the other Marauders as he scratched down his essay. Well, that's what he was supposed to be doing. He was letting his mind wander and his gaze drift to the Marauder's Map, which was lying close by his side. He finally found her name and blinked, abandoning his essay and holding the Map closer to see.

"Now what are you doing all the way out there?" he questioned, attracting the attention of the Marauders as his eyes narrowed at the name _Hermione Granger_ making her way – with ease, he'd like to add – to the Forbidden Forest.

* * *

It was no easy task being quiet, even if he were to go alone. Even though the four did know these woods very well, they were still quite nervous and very noisy. Remus seemed to know where they were going, a determined frown on his face as he led the other three. They were slowing though, a more worried look on his face until they reached a very small clearing, the four crouching down behind some bushes.

Hermione was in the clearing, pacing with her wand in her hand, frowning at the grass as it crunched under her feet. She was still in her pajamas, a jacket left open over a tank top. She took a deep breath, running her fingers through her curls as she tilted her face to the moonlight. A twig snapped, announcing the arrival of somebody else as she whirled around and glared at the figure.

"You're _late_," she said as the other person stepped into the light.

The woman was in her late thirties, her hair very pale as she appraised Hermione with a smug sort of gleam in her eyes to pair with the smirk. Hermione, in turn, tilted her chin up in defiance and stood straighter, which got the message clear across to even the Marauders: _I **dare** you_.

"Only a touch," she said.

"Try a bloody _month_," Hermione growled.

"Well, I had to go on an errand, Darling." Hermione's eyes darkened at the pet name. "My whole time can't be devoted solely to you, you know."

Hermione ignored the quip, "Are things in order on your end?"

"Hmm, about that," the woman hummed, "No."

Hermione seemed absolutely livid, "_What?_"

The woman smirked, a pale hand reaching up to undo the clasp on her cloak, "Well, you see, I realized that if you were to succeed in your endeavors, the Dark Lord wouldn't rise at all."

"That's the idea," Hermione was rolling her shoulders slowly, prepared for a fight as she gripped her wand.

"And if I got you back, as planned, I'd never get to have my hand at it," the woman smirked, taking the cloak off to show that the sleeves of her white dress were red with blood, which made Hermione and the hidden Marauders pale and grip their wands tightly, "Mummy and Daddy said their good-byes, though."

Hermione's eyes widened before she let out a very fearsome growl, lunging at the blonde, who dodged it with ease and let her crash to the forest floor.

Hermione whirled back to glare at her, blood streaming from a cut on her face, "You bitch, you bitch, you bitch, you _BITCH!"_ Hermione was on her feet again as the Marauders quickly whispered out a plan. Her wand was raised, as was the other woman's. Hermione was shaking though, and she was taking very deep breaths. "You _swore!_"

"Aww. Pretty little girl," the woman cooed, "Pretending to be such a big girl."

Hermione was pushed back to the ground by an invisible hand, looking up at the woman as she advanced before a rock hit her in the side of the head. The two blinked and turned to see Peter to the woman's left, grinning and waving.

"Hi!" he said happily before they saw Remus right behind Hermione, grinning as well.

"We're distractions!" Remus grinned as James appeared to the woman's right.

"Hey, me too!" James shot her a thumbs up.

"Blimey, so am I!" Sirius exclaimed, making her whirl around to blink at him before whirling back to see that Hermione, Remus, Peter and James had all left. She was nearly knocked down by a black dog as it dashed away, making her growl at her plan being ruined.

* * *

Hermione stared blankly at the other wall as she slid down the door of the Shrieking Shack, the four boys panting for breath as she pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

"Hermione," James spoke first, kneeling down in front of her, "Please, tell us what's going on."

Hermione looked up at him, her eyes dark before it all shattered, leaving fear and sadness in them before she flung herself at him, sobbing into his shoulder as James froze and looked up at the other shocked guys.

"Holy shit, what do I do?" he mouthed, patting her back awkwardly.

Remus took pity on him and rolled his eyes, kneeling down and pulling Hermione into him, her fingers gripping his jacket tightly as warm tears spilled and soaked through his shirt and onto his skin. He wrapped his arms around her, whispering into her hair.

James stood, glancing back at Sirius and Peter to silently ask when Remus had gotten so good at comforting girls, to which they both shrugged at.

"Hermione," Remus spoke after a few moments, "Can you tell us what happened?"

Hermione cried for a few more moments, pulling back and looking at him desperately, "She – she lied to me, and she – she - !" She hiccupped back another sobbed, her body shaking as she suppressed another and another. She took a few deep breaths through her nose. "The day after the war ended, this woman comes barreling into the Ministry of Magic, saying she knows a foolproof way to go back in time and change everything for the better. I volunteered to go. It was decided that once I'd fixed everything I had to, I would go to her and she would merge me into the new Hermione Granger." Hermione's determined gaze broke again, welling up with tears, "And – and she went and she – she killed my – my – my _parents!_"

Remus was the one to pull her into him, gripping her tightly as she cried harder and harder into his shoulder.

* * *

There was a light hum by his left ear, making him tilt his head closer to where it originated, only it wasn't heard again. Instead, a breeze drifted on his neck, which made him blink his eyes lazily up at the ceiling of the Shrieking Shack. _Must've been a full moon last night…_he thought before the actual events of last night came flooding back full force.

Remus tilted his head to his side, where one arm was slung protectively around Hermione's side as she was up next to his. He looked back, seeing Sirius hogging up the whole bed, although James had stolen the pillow and was halfway under the bed. Peter was a rat curled up in the pocket of a scrap of shirt. Remus brought his free hand to his eyes, rubbing at them before snapping them open.

"_Hermione, wake up_," he hissed, making her lift her head and open her eyes blearily at him, "Look, I know this isn't the best situation, and I'm very sorry for waking you up, but what time is it?"

She lifted her watch to her eyes, blinking before shrugging, "Six." Her eyes widened as she looked up at Remus, the two jumping to their feet and rustling the other Marauders awake.

"Padfoot, Prongs, wake up, it's six!" Remus ordered as Hermione poked Peter's side.

Sirius groaned, "Sixty more minutes."

"Sirius, do you know where my shirt is? I've seemed to have misplaced it," Hermione called, making him sit up and blink at her before frowning.

"That was cruel."

"You're a pervert," she countered, "Wake James up – we obviously can't."

Sirius took a pillow off the bed and walloped James in the face with it, "Prongs, wakey wakey, we gotta go see Evans."

"Mmhuh," James said, opening his eyes and putting his glasses back on as he yawned and slid out from underneath the bed.

"Look, guys, I appreciate what you did for me last night, all of you," Hermione said as she hopped into her shoe.

"Hermione, we're always here," James promised.

"Yeah," Peter smiled as they began to make their way slowly down the tunnel.

"What're you going to do? With that lady?" Sirius asked.

Hermione's gaze darkened again, "Give her hell."

He chuckled and patted her back, "We wouldn't expect any less."

"Wait," James stopped, making them bump into each other and frown at him, "Isn't today Saturday?"

They were silent for a few moments, absorbing this fact before they all groaned, ushering James along to get back to their own beds.

Somewhere along the halfway point, Remus found himself behind Hermione, the others a bit of a ways ahead.

"Hermione, I'm really sorry what happened to your parents," he found himself saying.

Hermione sighed, "Me too. I love them and I'll miss them, but…." She turned and looked back at him, "Thank you. For last night. I'm sorry I ruined your shirt."

He glanced back at his shoulder, "It's no big deal. Was that woman…was she the reason you'd been ignoring us for a month?"

"Yes, and I'm sorry," she bit her lip, "I was mad at her the day Sirius cut my hair, and I blew up a bit. I do that when I'm stressed. A few of my friends think I'm actually rather violent because of that. So I stayed away, because I don't want you lot to think I hate you."

"We could never hate you," he smiled softly at her.

She smiled back, "Thanks, Remus."

Remus had the same smile on his face as he followed her back to the castle.

* * *

**I'd wanted to talk to you guys about so much while I was writing this, but now I can't remember. Don't you _hate_ when that happens? **

**But there are a few things.**

**One of them is that I've got an 'ask Hermione' blog on Tumblr, and am _begging_ you to go and ask me a question. The URL is on my bio, and you can even ask anonymously if you don't have a Tumblr account. My personal account is also on my bio if you're interested.**

**The second is that I'm working with the woman from this chapter, and she won't show up again until later on. And no – Hermione isn't really aware of her name. She thinks it starts with an 'H,' but isn't entirely certain. **

**The third is just a realization I've got. Number 12 Grimmauld place, in fanfictions anyway, is a lot like the TARDIS. It's bigger on the inside. That's how I always imagined it, even in the books, but I never realized that there wasn't evidence to prove or dispel that fact. So…Doctor Who references! Yeah! Gotta love 'em!**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	7. The Hot Blooded Thing

**Whoever went on Tumblr and asked "Hermione" a question – you are my hero. And whoever is following me on there – you're my hero too.**

* * *

Hermione frowned down at the thing in her lap, looking at it irritably before shoving it off onto the floor. You might think that this would be a bit weird if it were a book or something, but seeing as it was Sirius Black's head, it was pretty justified.

"Oy, knock it off," Hermione frowned at him, "You're lucky I'm being nice to you."

"Whatever for?" Sirius asked as he stood, dressed in Quidditch gear.

"You _cut_ my _hair_, Sirius!" she exclaimed, huffing as he perched on the arm rest of her chair.

"It looks cute this way – doesn't it, Moony?" he asked his friend on the couch, tugging at one of Hermione's curls playfully.

"Mmhmm," he said noncommittally, scribbling furiously on a paper. As James came down from the stairs, also dressed in his Quidditch uniform, and made his way behind the couch, Remus leaned back and handed him the paper, "Here, Prongs, fixed it."

James took it and started bowing, "Thank you, Almighty and Powerful Moony."

"What was that about?" Hermione asked as James flopped into a chair across from her, Sirius still tugging at a curl.

"I usually go over James's plays before a match," Remus said, stretching his arms up over his head. "He starts doubting if I don't."

"I highly doubt you needed to change anything," Hermione smiled.

"Well, normally no, but Scarlett snuck in on a Slytherin practice and they would've done the same play we're doing, and I didn't find out until midnight because Scarlett had detention for sneaking in on their practice, so Moony did it while I was freaking out over it," James said all of this in a rush, which made Hermione blink a few times before asking to see the paper. He handed it to her, watching her nervously, "Now the 'x's are us and the 'o's are them, and the main idea is – "

"James," Hermione stopped him with a smile, "I can read a playbook."

"You know Quidditch?" Sirius asked, surprised.

"Of course I know Quidditch," she scoffed, rolling her eyes, "What kind of person doesn't know Quidditch?"

"About eighty percent of the girls at our school, and the twenty percent that do know Quidditch can't read a playbook," Remus offered before arching an eyebrow at her, "Do you play Quidditch?"

"No – I'm terrified of heights," she grinned, "That doesn't mean I don't know it or that I've never ridden a broom though." She turned back to the playbook – although we should really stop calling it that, as it was just a piece of paper, before handing it back to James, "Sounds good, a little tricky, but you are you, so I can't wait to see it."

"What do you mean 'I am me?'" James asked.

Hermione only grinned wider and stood up, "He's excellent at Quidditch."

"Wait, what?" Sirius blinked as James slowly began to smile up at her, looking quite elated as she grinned and turned back to Sirius and Remus, who looked especially confused.

"Nothing. I'll meet you down at the pitch."

"Save me a seat?" Remus asked when she was nearing the portrait hole.

"Of course!" she shrugged without turning around, stepping through.

Emmeline and Alice were at his side in an instant, grinning madly at him before cooing as he sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Hello, girls," he frowned as they grinned wider.

"Just admit it, Lover boy," Emmeline chuckled.

"You like Hermione," Alice sang, smiling sweetly at him.

"What is it about me that makes them torture me?" Remus asked James, "What did I do to deserve all of this nonsense?"

"It's not nonsense!" Emmeline huffed.

"It's the truth – you totally like Hermione and are in complete and utter denial!" Alice frowned.

"How _bored_ are you two?" Remus asked in amusement.

"Just listen to us!" Emmeline pouted.

"I am listening – I just can't believe what you're saying," he chuckled.

Alice and Emmeline shared the same glare as Lily chuckled behind them.

"Honestly, stop cheating," she grinned as she walked through the portrait hole.

"What? Cheating what?" Sirius asked as the two girls pouted.

"I think the girls placed a bet on Moony!" James grinned.

"What?" Remus turned to the very sheepish girls.

"Oh, would you look at that?" Emmeline held up her watch, "Alice, we really _must_ be going."

"Oh, yes ma'am – bye guys! Good luck on the game!" Alice called as they ran screaming out of the Common Room. Remus only gaped after them before sighing and hitting his head repeatedly against the back of the couch as James and Sirius laughed.

* * *

"Hey," Remus smiled as he slid in next to Hermione as she glared out at the Quidditch pitch, "What's wrong?"

"I forgot how cold mid-October is," she murmured, smiling softly at him. He noticed that she had her hands in her thick black jacket pockets, her legs crossed at the ankles to keep the wind from going up her jeans. Her cheeks and nose were red, and she looked mildly annoyed at her hair as it flew around her.

Remus chuckled, offering his hands to her and ignoring the little squeals he heard, which were no doubt from Alice and Emmeline, "Here, let me have your hands."

Hermione looked warily at him, making him grin wider, "Hot blooded thing. Going once…."

Hermione bit her lip, wincing.

"Going twice…."

"Sold," she said, pulling her hands out of her pockets and letting him wrap his own around hers, making him laugh and ignore the soft "oh-my-god!"s he was hearing. "Thank you."

"No problem!" he grinned back, internally smacking himself at how happy he seemed. She only arched an eyebrow at him before her attention was drawn onto the match.

* * *

"I am brilliant!" Sirius cheered as he danced out of the locker room, "Did you _see_ that dive I did?"

"Yeah, but who drew up the play, _Sirius_?" James countered with a grin, "Moony thought it up."

"Well, yeah, but…" Sirius faltered, "I did it!"

"Oy, give me credit where it's due!" Remus shouted, grinning as Sirius glared at him, James grinning wider as he strode to his friend.

"You like the match?" James smirked.

Remus blinked before smiling, "Yeah, nice save. I thought you were going to fly headlong into the stands."

James grimaced, "I thought I was too. But that is _not_ what I meant." As Remus looked even more confused, he grinned wider, "Were you or were you not holding Hermione's hands?"

"Ohmigawd, _what_?" Sirius suddenly whirled away from talking to Scarlett and stared at Remus, "_What?_"

"Her hands were cold," he shrugged innocently as Sirius began to bounce and beam at him, "What's your problem?"

"Did you see?" Emmeline asked excitedly, practically tackling Sirius and bouncing with him.

"No but I just heard!" he said gleefully as the girl danced.

Remus only watched on, an eyebrow arched as Lily and Hermione walked past.

"You've _got_ to dress up though!" they heard Lily saying as Hermione frowned at her, her hands back in her pockets, "All seventh years must dress up for Halloween – regardless of whether or not they're Muggle-born or half-blood or what! It's tradition!"

Hermione only rolled her eyes and kept walking, letting out an annoyed huff of air before replying simply, "No."

"Oh come on!" Lily argued, "You could go as a…err…."

Hermione smirked at her, "You almost said 'witch,' didn't you?"

Lily pouted, "So? Come on! You could go as anything you wanted to! You could be a mermaid or a siren or a fairy or – "

"Little Red Riding Hood!" Sirius offered, making Hermione snort and Lily grin.

"Yeah! You could go as Little Red Riding Hood if you wanted to!"

James and Sirius were suddenly leaning against each other as they laughed, Remus grimacing and trying to avoid Hermione's eyes as she glared at the two.

"Are you afraid of the big bad wolf, Granger?" Sirius winked as she rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm not dressing up," she insisted, turning to walk off.

"You could go as Juliet!" Lily tried.

"Like I don't get teased enough for my name!"

"You could go as – as Janis Joplin!"

"Lily, please!"

"Ahhh – oh I give up," she pouted, "Fine, don't go to Hogsmeade."

"What?" Hermione blinked and turned back around, looking confused.

"If seventh years dress up on Halloween, they get to go to Hogsmeade – some trick or treat, others just…go to Hogsmeade," she shrugged, "It's just a way to 'make another memory,' as Dumbledore says."

"Like just an extra Hogsmeade trip for this month?" Hermione asked, biting her lip. "And I've _got_ to dress up?"

"Uh-huh!" Alice smiled as she caught up with them, "We transfigure clothing and things."

Hermione winced before sighing, "The things I do…."

"Yes!" Alice cheered, "Emmeline, we get to dress Hermione up!"

"Hoo-ray!" she beamed as she started to bounce again, "Today's such a good day!"

Hermione only rolled her eyes and walked on, muttering to herself.

* * *

Remus frowned into his pillow before glancing at his watch. _Way_ past midnight. So much for a pleasant little thing called _sleeping_. He picked his pillow up and promptly set it back over his head, thinking that maybe the muffled noises or the smothering darkness would lull him to sleep.

Nope.

He sighed, thinking back over yesterday's events. He didn't see what everybody else was going on about. Alice and Emmeline acted as if they were watching some sort of television show any time he and Hermione were in the same room, and they were starting to suck the other Marauders in as well. The only ones unaffected were him, Hermione and Lily – although Lily _had_ said something about the other two cheating.

But so what? They were only friends. She'd accepted the fact that he had lycanthropy and had even made him a potion to help him during the full moons. She loved reading and tried to put on a fake smile when she was disturbed from it with a very uninteresting topic. She pranked back when provoked. She was pretty, even when she was freezing and annoyed with the weather. She fought back with everything she had.

"Holy _shit_," he found himself sitting up in bed, gaping at his bed hangings as he stirred Padfoot awake.

"Just now figure it out, have you?" he murmured sleepily.

"Oh my god, I'm an idiot," Remus replied, falling back on his bed and expecting to hit his pillow, only he hit the headboard instead and cursed as he rubbed the sore spot. Sirius chuckled and went back to sleep.

Well _now_ how was he going to face her?

* * *

**I think Sirius, Emmeline and Alice are like this pretty small Hermione/Remus fanclub, and they're slowly sucking others into it. I am physically restraining myself from having one of them shout out "MY SHIP" or "OTP" or "FEELS." Ohhh, I need to get off Tumblr. Somebody come help me.**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	8. The Lemur Ferret Drawing

**Ohhh, somebody get me off the internet, I need sleep dammit. :I**

* * *

Remus was very careful not to sit too close to her at all during Potions. Emmeline kept checking back and looking very smug, to which he glared at but said nothing. If he said something she might notice. Although she was noticing now anyway, and looking at him very strangely. She was too nice to say anything though. He tried to act normal, he really did, but with him yelling at himself internally and Emmeline still smirking over at him and the fact that they were supposed to be working with _Amor-freaking-tentia_ for a month, he was having issues with whatever this "normal" thing was.

"Remus?" she finally whispered, startling him from glaring at whatever he was drawing. He wasn't even quite sure what this was. It looked a little like a lemur but also like a ferret. A ferret-lemur. Lemur-ferret? _Yes._ "Are you alright?"

_Aside from me finally realizing that I have a crush on you and working on about one hour of sleep?_ "Oh yeah, fine, great even. Hey, does this look like a ferret or a lemur to you?" He offered the paper to her, but she didn't even glance at it, just kept staring at him with an eyebrow arched.

"Are you sure?" she asked, looking skeptic as she lowered the paper. "How much sleep did you get?"

He grinned sheepishly at her, "Can anybody ever _really_ measure sleep?"

"Remus Lupin!" she frowned, glaring, "Tell me!"

"Uhhh," he winced, "Let's see…I woke up at six so…an hour?"

"You can't do that to yourself," she frowned, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Well it wasn't _voluntary_," he glared back.

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head and going back to writing ingredients, "Why couldn't you sleep?"

"Huh?" he asked, as he had gone back to his lemur-ferret drawing.

"Why couldn't you sleep?" she repeated.

"Oh, umm…" he winced, "I dunno. So – are you really going to dress up for Halloween?"

She winced and sighed, "I really need a few books from Hogsmeade, and I don't know if I can wait a whole other month."

"What're you going to dress up as?"

She snorted, "No idea. I'm letting Alice pick it out. I just know _that's_ going to bite me in the ar – aha." She suddenly seemed to notice who she was talking to, flushing as he grinned, "I mean…I wasn't…" They stared at each other for a moment, him grinning as she blushed before she turned back to the ingredients sheet, "So, love potion! What're we doing with it?"

"Let's just throw everything you wrote down in a pot and see what happens," he said as he set his chin on the table, looking down his nose at his drawing.

She looked a little amused, "Umm, hello whoever you are – could you please bring Remus Lupin back? I rather need to work on a very important project with him."

He sat up and smiled back, "I'm fine with making potions – I just can't make them up. That's more Sirius and James's speed."

"Lucky for you, I happen to know two very successful pranksters who make everything from scratch," she smiled, holding up the paper, "And they just so happened to lend me a few recipes one time."

He arched an eyebrow, "Why did you need them?"

She blanched, the hand holding the paper crumpling it up a little, "Aah…no reason."

He grinned back at her, "Uh-huh."

* * *

"Why won't you dress up?" James questioned as Remus leaned against the side of his bed, a book in his lap as he grinned up at James, who was in jeans and a t-shirt but had charmed his face to look marred and a little deformed. Remus couldn't help but laugh as he was currently putting his fists on his hips and trying to glare at him.

"I don't really want to go into Hogsmeade," he shrugged back, "Have fun, I'll see you at dinner."

"But – " James began.

"Nah – go," Remus stood and walked with him down the boys' staircase, stopping at the end when they saw Sirius sitting on Hermione and drawing on her face.

She looked very miffed until he grabbed her chin and glared at her, "You don't stop moving I'm going to write 'STD' on your face." She then promptly froze as he grinned and blackened the tip of her nose, drawing lines on her cheeks and allowing her to stand.

She was wearing a black long sleeved shirt, the sleeves covering her hands aside from her fingers, and black skinny jeans and boots with an orange choker. Lily had charmed movable black cat ears onto her headband, a tail twitching as her ears laid back and she glared at Sirius, who grinned even wider.

"Watch it, Kitten," Sirius smirked, "You aren't the only one with claws."

"Ooh, Kitten," James grinned, "A sense a nickname!"

"No you don't!" Hermione glared at him, making Remus grin wider as her ears and tail twitched.

"I practically hear you growling over there, Hermione," Lily laughed, sitting in a chair in a purple dress, her skin from her collarbone down charmed to look like blue scales.

Alice was sitting cross-legged by the door, her eyes closed as she waved her arms lightly around, softly talking about peace and love and Woodstock. Emmeline, who was a ghost, had on a long white robe with her hair and skin charmed very white.

"Maybe we can get you to purr," James teased before ducking as she swung a punch, "Me-_ow!_"

"Oh, shut up!" Hermione blushed, crossing her arms over her chest, "What are you supposed to be?"

"Some slasher victim," James shrugged dully.

"In that case, you need much more blood on you."

"Can I do that? I mean, little kids are in Hogsmeade," he furrowed his brow, wondering.

"Good point," she nodded before turning back to Sirius and letting a small smile on her face, "A biker?"

"I just wear my regular clothes," he shrugged, smiling as he glanced down at his jeans, black t-shirt and leather jacket, "No work needed."

"That is your life motto," Remus said as he dropped into a chair, opening up his book, "Padfoot: No Work Needed."

"Shove it," Sirius grinned at him, "You coming?"

"Oh yes – can't you tell what my costume is?" he deadpanned, "I'm obviously a werewolf on a night that isn't the full moon."

Hermione coughed back a laugh as James bit his lip and grinned, Sirius blinking before grinning as well. Lily, Alice and Emmeline only found this mildly amusing as Remus grinned wider and shrugged.

"You go, I'll be fine with this," he held his book out in front of him as Hermione leaned down to read the title.

"Huh. Good book. I love the second though," she said, straightening herself out, waving as she and the others walked to the portrait hole, "See you later, Remus."

"Bye, Moony!"

"Bye guys," he waved back, smiling as he went back to his book.

* * *

**…Honestly, I had more planned, but it just…wouldn't fit so I…didn't put it in. Sorry. *shrug***

**Love,**

**Ava**


	9. The Rude Awakening

**"I just wanna be okay, be okay, be okay, I just wanna be okay today." – Ingrid Michaelson, "Be Ok"**

* * *

Hermione smiled down at them as James leaned against her tree, grinning up at her as the large wolf rolled his eyes at the barking dog, "Sirius, let me get down!"

The dog shook his head, looking defiant as Peter climbed onto his head dully, giving a big yawn.

"Please?" she asked, still holding onto the tree trunk, "I hate heights!"

"Don't think it's gonna happen, Hermione," James chuckled.

"So I'm just going to sit up here until morning?" she asked incredulous, "I've got essays to do!"

"They aren't due in weeks!" James exclaimed with a grin as she let out an annoyed huff.

Remus rolled his eyes once more and set his head on his paws, looking slightly amused at his friends. James had asked Hermione if she'd wanted to come and she'd agreed, although when she said she was going to head back to the castle, Sirius had somehow gotten her up a tree and wouldn't let her down. He was going to pay for that later. It was going to be entertaining for them, at least.

"Sirius Black!"

He shifted into human form, jostling Peter around as he grinned up at her before the rat looked him in the eyes and glared, "Sorry, Peter, forgot you were up there." He turned back to Hermione, "Why are you in such a hurry to leave? We've got all night!"

"Umm…" Hermione winced, glancing back at Remus, "You're…you're really….ahh…."

"Oh, Padfoot," James laughed as he slapped his hand over his eyes, "You didn't just…."

Remus got up and left the little clearing, coming back with jeans and a t-shirt in his mouth and setting them down in front of Sirius pointedly.

"Ohh," he said after a moment, looking up at Hermione and grinning, "Well you said he had nice abs last time!"

She snorted, rolling her eyes, "Let me down."

"Hey, I'm not stopping you now." He smirked, "Go ahead."

She blinked as she looked down at the forest floor, "Aahh-umm…."

"Want some help?" James asked as Remus picked his clothes up again and left.

"Umm," Hermione fidgeted on her limb, "Maybe…."

Remus came back into the clearing, shoving the t-shirt over his head and shaking his head at them as he grinned, "Hermione, let us help."

Peter jumped off of Sirius's head and shifted back, fixing his hair as he looked up at her.

"I'm sure I can get down," she said, mostly to herself as she looked down at the ground and her tree.

Remus rolled his eyes, grabbing her ankle and tugging her down into his arms with a scream. She smacked him in the shoulder as he grinned down at her, setting her back on her feet.

"Last time I ever come out here with you four," she muttered, rolling her eyes as she picked up her wand.

"Liar," Sirius teased. "You love us."

She sighed, smiling as they walked out of the woods, "Sadly, that _is_ true."

"You hear that?" James brightened, "She admits it! She loves us!" He then picked her up, which made her glare at him as he hugged her closer. She looked around James's shoulder at Remus, glaring playfully.

"You started this," she said.

He chuckled and nodded, "That I did. And I feel no remorse."

She sighed, rolling her eyes and she pushed against James's shoulder, "Prats."

* * *

"Where have you been?" Emmeline questioned, sitting on top of Hermione as she groaned at being woken up, Alice climbing up onto her bed as well. Lily yawned and sat next to Hermione, their other roommate ignoring the other girls as usual. "What time did you get in?"

"Around…three?" Hermione wondered, squinting one eye as she pondered.

"You've got a leaf in your hair," Lily murmured, cuddling up to her pillow, "Thought you might want to know."

"What? Where?" she searched her mass of curls before finally finding it, throwing it to the floor as she muttered, "Prat."

"Where is it?" Emmeline asked, looking very stern.

"Where's what?" Hermione blinked.

"Your hickey!" she suddenly dived for her neck, looking around for it as Hermione squawked, "Where is it? I must see!"

"Emmeline, what are you - ?" Hermione gasped, sitting up and shoving her off, "You think I - ? No! No, no, no!"

"Then what were you doing?"

"It is rather questionable, Hermione," Alice admitted.

"I was, umm…" she winced, "I was ahh…serving detention. With Hagrid. We went into the Forbidden Forest to check on some of the animals."

The two girls blinked as Lily cracked an eye open, "What did you have detention for?"

"Oh, I called Black something and Binns heard it," she waved her hand through the topic, "Why would you think I went outside to go snog somebody?"

Emmeline and Alice both groaned as Lily chuckled, the redhead singing something that sounded vaguely like "I'm gonna wi-in" into Hermione's pillow.

Hermione rolled her eyes and got out of bed, grabbing a uniform and walking to the bathrooms.

"You know, I'm thinking about just shaking her and yelling it into her face," Emmeline admitted, flopping down next to Lily as Alice wiggled in between the two.

"Goes against the bet," Lily chirped happily, smiling over Alice's head at Emmeline's glare.

"I think Remus knows," Alice spoke up softly, "He was twitchy in Potions."

"Hermione obviously doesn't," Emmeline huffed, crossing her arms over her chest, "And I _can't lose._"

Alice suddenly popped up out of the bed with a gasp, beaming, "I know what we can do!"

Emmeline sat up, looking at her curiously, "What?"

"C'mon!" she ran out of the dorms, Emmeline following as Lily sighed and got up to go get ready.

* * *

"Wouldn't the mint be kinda like…toothpaste?" James wondered as he looked over Remus and Hermione's list of ingredients for their potion, Hermione taking the paper back and frowning at him.

"Not unless you like mint," Remus shrugged, biting into his apple, "And we're adding in some type of flower into it too, so….What's it called again? The flower?"

"Ahh," Hermione checked the paper, "Rosemary, thyme, mint, rose petals, lemon leaves…ahhh, oh, aster."

"Yeah," he said, "I always forget that and thyme."

Sirius gave a loud yawn from his place at the table, putting his chin on his folded arms and closing his eyes, "Wake me up when the school year ends, mmkay?"

Hermione smiled and rolled her eyes before she was abruptly pulled out of her seat, making her scream a little as Emmeline and Alice bounced.

"Hermione!"

"Hermione!"

"Hermione!"

"Hermione!"

Hermione winced and pulled out of Emmeline's grasp, "What?"

"We want you to meet somebody!" Alice began with a huge grin.

Hermione then began to blush, "Really girls, I don't need to – "

"He's in Ravenclaw, so he's really smart," Alice interrupted.

"He's a megawatt hottie," Emmeline grinned.

"He's such a sweetheart."

"And he's totally interested in you."

"And I've heard he's a really good kisser, so you'll have a hickey for real!"

"Alice!" Hermione gasped, her eyes wide as she covered her mouth with her hand, blushing as Sirius and James sniggered behind her, "I don't need a boyfriend!"

"But – " Alice pouted, her eyes growing big as she turned on her 'do-whatever-the-hell-I-want' eyes, "But, Hermione…we only want you to be happy."

Hermione winced, her resolve wavering, "I'll think about it."

"Great!" she brightened up, "'Cause he's coming this way right now!"

"Bye, Honey, good luck!" Emmeline grinned before dashing back to Lily with Alice, Hermione gaping after them before fuming.

"Those - !" she cut herself off as she turned to the young man in front of her, who was looking at her rather bashfully.

"Hi," he smiled, his brown hair falling into his blue eyes, "Hermione, right?"

"Ahh, y-yes," she stammered, tugging at her hair and biting her lip. She was subconsciously aware that the Marauders were paying their undivided attention to her.

"I'm Gil," he smiled a little bit wider, "From Arithmancy?"

"Oh, y-yes," she nodded, "I remember."

"Well, I was wondering, and Alice and Emmeline talked to me, and umm…" he wavered before continuing, "Would you like to hang out with me sometime? Maybe go to Hogsmeade, if all goes well?"

Hermione stood there, her cheeks pink as she opened and shut her mouth before biting her lip, thinking before smiling a little, "Sure."

His face brightened, "Brilliant! I'll see you in class, alright?"

"Alright," she nodded before he walked back to the Ravenclaw table. She sat back down next to Remus, chewing on her lip and refusing to meet anybody's eyes. Which was probably a good thing, as Sirius, James and even Peter were shooting sympathetic glances to Remus as he winced behind his apple.

_Ouch_.

Alice and Emmeline definitely _were not_ his favorite people.

* * *

**Ummm…I dunno what to say here about this chapter that won't ruin a later chapter. Sooo…I like the song "Gray or Blue" by Fraymay. It's a really cute song and I'm thinking about including it in the story in some way.**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy these frequent updates – I should be updating/working on other things, but I click on this tab and I find myself uploading another chapter. (It probably helps that a lot of these are so freaking _short_, but whatever.)**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	10. The Invitation

**I wonder how many of you people hate me now because of last chapter….Hmm….**

* * *

"That's terrible!" James hissed to the two girls as they winced at each other, "Did you think that maybe that guy might actually like Hermione? Or that Hermione might like him? And what about Remus, hmm? Did you think about him? Merlin, I can't believe you two!"

"But, James, if Remus gets jealous, then he'll ask her out, right?" Emmeline asked sheepishly.

"You obviously don't know Remus," James snorted, rolling his eyes, "He'll believe that he isn't good enough and blah-blah blabbity blah-blah _blah_. This is like a punch to the gut for him, girls. And if either of them ever found out what you did – ohh, boy, I feel sorry for you two there." He frowned at them as they winced at each other again, "Why'd you do it, anyway?"

"The bet," Alice groaned, running her hands through her short brown hair.

"What bet?" James questioned sternly.

"We can't tell you!"

"Why not?"

"It's part of the bet," Emmeline spoke up.

"Who's the bet with?" James asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Lily," they answered.

"Look, James, we can't do anything right now, it's out of our hands," Emmeline began, "But you and Sirius and even Peter could – "

"No," he interrupted harshly.

"But why?" Alice asked.

He shook his head, "We want Hermione to be happy too. If Gil makes her happy, then we'll stay out of it. We'll just have to cheer up Remus in the meantime."

"Don't get him over her though!" Alice said hurriedly, "We're still working on this!"

"And it's going so well, isn't it?" James asked drily, glaring at the two before sighing, running his hand over his face, "Whatever. I just don't even care anymore. Fix it, work on it, whatever, I don't care, just _don't_ hurt my friends anymore, alright? That goes for Hermione too."

"We totally screwed up," Alice sighed as James walked out of the empty classroom.

"Your idea," Emmeline shrugged, making her glare at her.

* * *

"Good afternoon, Kitten," Sirius teased as he walked next to Hermione, making her sigh and smile at him slightly.

"Hullo, Sirius."

"Now Kitten," Sirius admonished, "We're close now. Call me Padfoot."

"Fine, _Padfoot_," she grinned, "What can I help you with?"

"What? Can't I just walk with you?" he asked innocently.

"I guess, but you don't do it often unless the others are around," she smirked, "Spill it."

"What's with you and Swimmy?" he questioned with a frown.

"Me and _who?_" she blinked before frowning, "Sirius, his name is Gil, and he's very nice."

"Yeah, yeah," he said dismissively, "But what's _with_ you two? Is it incredibly awkward? Is it weird? Have you snogged yet? Do you even hold hands? Why isn't _he_ walking with you? I mean, you've been 'dating' for a few weeks now, and not once have I seen him walk with you to any class or anything."

"Why do you care?" she asked, stopping in the hallway and crossing her arms over her chest, glaring at him.

"I want you to be happy, Hermione, I really do, but something is just _off_ here," he told her earnestly, "Don't you think so?"

She bit her lip, looking down at the floor, "I don't know. I've never really…so I don't know."

He shook his head, smiling at her softly, "So what're you doing for the holidays?" They started walking again, making Hermione appreciate the topic change.

"I'm just staying here," she shrugged, "Nowhere to really _go_, right?"

"You could come to the Potters," he smiled, "That's where I'm going. They'll take anybody in, and I think Missus Potter would appreciate some other girl there."

She shook her head, grimacing, "Nah, that'd be kind of awkward, I think."

"Yeah," he shrugged, "Good point. So you're just going to stay here and do…what? Lily, Emmeline and Alice are all going home, I hear, and the only ones left are going to be Moony and what's-her-face, and you two have never really talked, right?"

She winced, "Well, yeah, but I've never really done anything to make her hate me, so…maybe we'll be friends."

"Hermione, there's a bigger likelihood of me becoming friends with a Slytherin," Sirius pointed out dully before wrapping his arm around her shoulder and squeezing her into him, "Hey, Moony'll watch out for you, if you need it."

She smiled and nodded, "Yeah, I know. Moony's good."

He smiled a little bit wider, "Yes he is, Kitten."

She groaned at the nickname and tried to pull away from him, but he only chuckled and hugged her closer.

* * *

Hermione frowned at their cauldron, tying her hair back as she did so, "This isn't working. Why isn't it working?"

Remus watched as her fingers slipped through her hair and the rubber band, finding her curls fascinating before blinking, realizing she'd said something, "Ahh, I don't know."

"Maybe more rosemary or thyme…" she turned to their book and pages, running her hand across the words as she frowned at it, "What do you think?"

"Umm…thyme," he blinked again, as he'd been tilting his head and resisting the urge to brush a wayward curl out of her face. Stupid lycanthropy, enhancing the senses and other such nonsense. "I think we're close though."

"Hmm," she hummed, picking out a few more lemon leaves and dropping them in, smiling as she pulled away from the purple fumes, "Think that's it?"

He edged away from the potion, "Yup. Now put the lid on it."

"Why?" she asked innocently.

He only grinned at her, "You forget."

"Forget wha – oh," she blushed a little, wincing as she put the lid on the cauldron, "Sorry."

"It's alright," he shrugged.

Slughorn stopped by their desk and smiled at them, "Any luck, you two?"

"I think we're done," Hermione waved her hand to their cauldron.

"Excellent!" he waved his wand, the lid popping open as a vial got some of the potion and zoomed to his desk to label itself. "You two are a few of my best students."

"Thank you, Professor," Remus answered for them.

"I hear that you're both staying at Hogwarts over the holidays?"

"Yes, sir," Hermione bit her lip, trying not to wince.

"Excellent!" he brightened, "You can come to the annual ball I hold!"

Hermione and Remus glanced between each other and winced before trying to speak up, but Slughorn ignored them.

"I'll look forward to seeing you there!" he said, walking away as Hermione sighed and plunked her head on their desk.

"Oh, I hate those," she muttered into the wood.

"We can always skip out," Remus grinned as she picked her head up, interested, "Make an appearance, talk to him for a few minutes, then run like mad."

"Oh, you're brilliant," she beamed at him, making him grin back.

* * *

***headlaptop*hjksksjkdfhfd**

**I need to stop. I really do. Arrgghhhh. What's wrong with me? Why do I keep doing this? Why? Why? Why?**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	11. The Discussions Had

***spins around, arms outstretched***

** I just really don't know.**

* * *

The clock on her bedside table was ticking, counting down the hours until she was supposed to get up. Alice, Emmeline, Lily and Christina were already fast asleep, their breathing steady and barely noticeable. But Hermione just couldn't fall asleep.

She bit her lip, hugging her pillow to her chest. Ever since Sirius had walked with her through the hallway that day, her mind had been swimming. Oh god, he was right. Her relationship with Gil _was_ painfully awkward and weird. He was nice, sure, and funny too – to a certain extent – but it just…wasn't right. He was rather shy and they had only ever talked about mutual interests, like classes or books. They'd never even had any physical contact, and at this rate Hermione highly doubted that they ever would. She barely knew him, and he barely knew her, and that was about as far as it would get.

But, dammit, she was stuck in this time for good, she'd accepted that one night in the Room of Requirement as she flipped out about it. She wasn't going to end up alone with ten cats. She'd barely managed Crookshanks, for Merlin's sake.

_Remus is nice_, her brain betrayed in an Emmeline-ish voice, _He's funny too._

Hermione shut her eyes forcefully, frowning into her pillow.

_He's smart and sweet, and he's very brave, and he's rather outgoing. _

"Shut up," Hermione hissed to herself, wanting to clap her hands over her ears to stop listening, but the voice was in her _head_, so she couldn't.

_And would it be so bad if he hugged you, or kissed you? Would it be so bad if you finally admitted that you fancy him?_

"Yes, it would," she muttered, opening her eyes again, "Very bad." She was lying to herself, she knew. She couldn't really see anything bad happening if she and Remus _were_ to date. "He doesn't even like me like that."

_How do you **know?**_

And Hermione couldn't think of anything.

* * *

Hermione was biting her lip, walking down the hall with Sirius's arm around her shoulders as he argued with Remus about something. She stood up straighter and her heartbeat quickened when she saw Gil talking to one of his friends from Hufflepuff. She shook off Sirius's arm, "I'll see you in class."

"Huh?" Sirius asked, turning as he watched her walk over to Gil. He and Remus stopped and watched as Gil said goodbye to his friend and turned to Hermione. She said something, looking at her hands as she did so, and looked up at him to see he was nodding and smiling a little. He said something that looked like "I agree" before continuing on. He reached down to Hermione and hugged her, pecking her on the cheek before smiling down at her, waving as he turned into the Great Hall for lunch and she walked away in the direction of the library.

"I hate people," Remus sighed, frowning at his friend as he nodded and ushered him into the Great Hall, telling him not to worry about Hermione and whatnot.

* * *

Remus stepped through the portrait hole with James and Peter, stopping when he saw Alice shaking Hermione.

"Why did you break up with him?" Alice demanded with a frown, settling her hands on her hips. This statement made Remus grin a little and turn his attention on the two.

"It was too weird," Hermione told her truthfully, "We'd been going out for nearly a month now and I barely even know him."

"But – "

"Alice, we're fine, we're going to try to be friends," she said before grabbing a book and heading upstairs.

Alice watched her go before smirking and offering her palm to Emmeline, who high-fived her with a grin.

"That's how we do things the Alice way!" she cried as she plopped into the empty seat by Emmeline.

"You mean by messing it up first with Emmeline and having no clue what to do once you realize you messed it up, then once you realize things go in your favor you claim credit?" James asked as he sat in a chair, smiling when she glared at him, "Nice job, by the way."

"Oh, shut it, James," Emmeline grumbled as Lily hide her grin behind a book. She stood, smiling at the Marauders, "Well, I'm going to go gossip with her and hopefully weasel information out of her. Tah!"

"That's going to be fun, I bet," Sirius chuckled, sitting in her seat, "Now, what is all of this about?"

"The bet," Alice, Lily and James answered.

"What bet?" Remus asked.

"You can't talk about the bet," James said.

"Why not?" Peter questioned.

"It's in the bet," Lily said.

"Ohh-kay," Sirius said after the three glanced between each other.

* * *

"Did he cry? I bet he cried," Emmeline said as she rolled around on Hermione's bed, "Did you make Swimmy cry, Hermione?"

"No, I didn't, and don't call him that," she frowned over her book.

"Well what happened then?" she pouted, "I want to know!"

Hermione sighed and marked her page, setting the book aside and propping herself up with her arms, "I told him that our relationship was weird and awkward and he agreed. He asked if we could still be friends though, and I said sure. He hugged me and pecked me on the cheek before going into the Great Hall for lunch while I went to the library to get my book. Happy?"

"Sorta," she smirked, crossing her legs, "Now, what made you come to the conclusion to break it off with him?"

"Well," she sighed, "I couldn't sleep, so I started thinking, and…well, he just wasn't really what I wanted."

"What do you want?"

She narrowed her eyes at her, "Are you going to try to set me up with somebody again?"

"No, I promise," she smiled.

Hermione sighed, flopping onto her stomach, "Somebody with a better sense of humor than mine. Somebody smart, nice, brave. It'd help if he was taller than me, but not _so tall_, you know?" At her nod, she continued, "I'm actually a very hug-y person, so if he wasn't too shy would be nice."

"So…someone like Remus?"

Hermione shot up, blinking at her and willing her face not to blush, "What are you talking about?"

Emmeline watched for a moment, wondering if she was acting or not before realizing she wasn't, "You just described Remus, Love."

"No, I didn't."

"Alright, you didn't," she patted her hand and stood, "I'll let you get back to your book."

"Thanks," she said slowly, skeptically. Emmeline smiled and left the room, leaning against the wall outside of the door and huffing, "So close."

Hermione sighed, biting her lip and glancing at the door, "That was close."

* * *

***bows***

**Love,**

**Ava**


	12. The Drama Queen

**…Soooo…anybody ever watched _The Breakfast Club_? I love that movie and I want to include it in this story in some way, but it came out in 1985, and we're obviously not in the 80's yet so…*pouts* But I'll try to put in some references to appease my brain. Point them all out to me and I'll…say hi. **

**ALSO: _Beauty and the Beast _is mentioned in this chapter, although it wasn't really around in the seventies. Let's just say it's like a really early version of it. Or you can think that Muggle technology is really advanced here. Whichever you want.**

* * *

Remus blinked as he heard a yelp from downstairs. He set his book down and walked out of the empty boys' dorms, going down the staircase to see Hermione looking incredulously at her yelling roommate. Scarlett was on her feet, her teeth bared as she snarled at the older girl, a couple of her friends holding her back.

"Little Miss 'High-and-Mighty,' little Miss 'So Important,'" Christina scoffed, "Think you're so full of yourself, do you?"

Hermione only blinked at her, "No, I don't."

"Ugh," Christina wrinkled her nose and rolled her eyes, "I forgot – Little Miss 'Supposedly Innocent.'"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Hermione frowned, hands on her hips.

"Oh please," she scoffed, "You hang out with the _Marauders_."

"I've never pranked with them," Hermione snorted, shaking her head.

"Oh _please!_ Just admit that you're sleeping with them!"

"_What?_" Hermione, Remus and Scarlett yelped, eyes wide and mouths hanging open as one of Scarlett's friends did a Z-snap and said "huh-uh!" As this was the one of tiniest girls in the sixth year and looked more like she was twelve, it was rather comical.

"Do you – _what – _I am _not_ some sort of – _what the hell?_" Hermione sputtered.

"Face it, Christina," Scarlett broke free of her friends' hold, standing next to Hermione with her wand out, "You're just jealous because she has some friends and you're just a neo-maxi-zoom-dweebie."

Christina scoffed as Hermione blinked at Scarlett, "Please! As if I'd ever be jealous of some _slag_."

"Bitch, you take that back!" Alexis, the small girl, ordered before Hermione straightened and glared at her.

"_I'm_ the slag, really?" she snorted, "Care to tell everybody where you've been every night for a week? Spoiler alert – not in the dorms!"

Christina gasped before huffing and going up the girls' staircase, slamming the door as Hermione groaned and rubbed her eyes.

"What the hell was that?" Remus asked, blinking at them.

"I have no bloody clue," Hermione admitted, frowning at him, "I accidentally bumped into her, said 'sorry,' and she just went _boom_."

"Oh that bitch, I hate her," Scarlett huffed, glaring at the door, "You aren't spending all holiday with her. You can stay with us – Mari's at her parents' house, we've got an extra bed."

"Yeah," Alexis nodded before wincing, "And besides, she's probably murdering a lot of your stuff."

Hermione cast a sad look up at the dorms, "I figured."

"Don't worry," Remus bumped her hip with his, smirking at her, "We'll get her."

"Yes!" Olivia cheered, throwing her arms up in the air, "Remus is on our team!"

"We need a team name!" Alexis said with a very serious expression, looking around at the group.

"Guys, don't embarrass me in front of them," Scarlett hissed as Hermione and Remus looked amusedly at them.

"SCAR!" was what accompanied her friends as they tackled her to the ground. She squawked and flailed as they tumbled before trying to glare at the two, finding it useless and laughing with them.

Hermione glanced back at Remus, the two sharing grins before laughing as well.

* * *

"I've always hated her," Alexis declared as she hung off of her bed, looking dully up at Hermione, "She's always acted as if she were better than the rest of us."

"Yeah – she barely talked to Lily and the other girls," Olivia snorted, "I mean – how can you live with a group of girls for years and never talk to them?"

"Her parents are really high-and-mighty purebloods," Scarlett explained, fixing her pajama sleeves before hugging a pillow, "They were in Slytherin, both of them, and they taught her that Gryffindors were scum."

"I heard she cried when she got Sorted," Alexis snorted, fixing her glasses back onto her nose, "Do – not – like."

"But I can't believe she thought that of you, Hermione," Olivia sat by her on the bed, "Nobody else thinks that way."

"Or at least they won't until tomorrow," Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes, "I'm fine. I've had far worse insults thrown at me."

"So," Scarlett chirped as she bounced onto Hermione's bed, grinning madly, "What _is_ with you and Remus?"

"Why does everybody think there's something with us?" Hermione asked, somewhat angrily.

"You just _ooze_ sexual tension," Alexis giggled as Hermione gaped at her.

"Don't think I didn't see you two holding hands during a match, Hermione," Scarlett winked, wagging her finger at her as she blushed.

"Care to share?" Olivia offered.

Hermione winced at them, biting her lip before sighing, "He's one of my best guy friends. It'd be too weird."

"Balderdash!" Alexis exclaimed, glaring at her, "He makes google eyes at you when he thinks you aren't looking!"

Hermione looked unconvinced by this.

"My question is whether or not you have feelings for him," Olivia asked.

Scarlett beamed as Hermione blushed a bit darker, "You _do!_"

"I didn't sign up for girl talk," Hermione frowned, tying her hair up.

"You do, you do, you do, you do!" Alexis ignored her request, bouncing on the bed as she screamed in delight, "Oh you'll start dating and fall in love and get married and have hundreds of adorable little babies!"

Olivia patted Hermione's shoulder as the girl blanched, "She has no sense of personal boundaries. You'll have to forgive her."

"I don't – we wouldn't – I don't see us…" Hermione stopped herself, staring into space as Alexis pouted up at her. "Oh my Merlin," she groaned, dropping her face into her hands, "Alright, alright, I admit it."

Scarlett and Alexis squealed and clapped, bouncing around the room as Olivia patted Hermione's back.

* * *

_Moony – _

_You really should've come. I mean, I understand why you didn't, if it wasn't my mother – who we all know and love – I probably would've stayed at Hogwarts too. _

_But, Happy Christmas anyway! _

_Keep Hermione safe too, will you?_

_- Prongs_

* * *

_Remus,_

_I hope you have a very good Christmas this year. Your father always spoke highly of Hogwarts and wished he could've spent more time there as well. So I understand, and don't feel guilty for not coming home for the holidays this year. But, if you don't write back, then you should feel guilty. A mother can only take so much, Remus. _

_Happy Christmas, I hope you enjoy your presents (it was very difficult to find something just right, so be proud of your mum.) Your father is trying to figure out how to re-string the Christmas lights on the tree, so I better go help him before he lights the house on fire._

_Love,_

_Mum_

_(PS – Sirius and James have written to me. I expect full details on Hermione later, young man.)_

* * *

_Happy Christmas from Lily, Emmeline, and Alice!_

* * *

Remus grinned at the pile of letters and presents on his bed, shifting through the pieces of paper before he turned to the owl that had just floated through the open window. He took the package and the letter, letting the bird sit on his pillow as he opened the letter first.

_Moony,_

_I knew you'd open the letter first, so hi! _

_There really isn't much to say about the present. I just think you'll find it very useful. Saw it in a Muggle movie once, a "cartoon." It was called "Beauty and the Beast," ever heard of it? Anyway, this Muggle prince was turned into a beast and this Muggle chick was all "blah blah blah, I hate you, go die" and he was all "I will if you don't love me." But you probably don't care about that. Anyway, he had this mirror…._

_I am expecting to make my grand appearance any second now._

_Padfoot_

Remus blinked at the letter before turning to the package, ripping the paper off and blinking at his reflection. He frowned at it, tilting it and looking for instructions, "Alright then, Padfoot, how do I use this?"

He started when Sirius's face come in very close, his breath fogging it up as he grinned.

"_Hi_," he beamed before James walked by and dragged him back by his collar dully, continuing on his way once that was done.

Remus grinned, "Thanks for the present. You too, James!"

"Mmyeah!" he said from the other room.

"So how does this work?" Remus asked, flopping onto his pillow and holding the mirror aloft.

"Well, it'll work like this for me and James, but if you want to see, like, Professor Flitwick, he won't see you," he shrugged. "You can only see me because I have a mirror too."

"Ahh, magic," James grinned as he walked back.

Remus chuckled before sitting up when Hermione walked in, smiling at her before blinking at her overly large sweater. It was a bright orange and a bright blue zig-zagging together as Hermione nervously pulled her hair back.

"I have no pajamas," she explained before crawling up onto the bed next to him, smiling when Sirius beamed at her, "Hi, Padfoot!"

"Kitten!" he exclaimed, making James tilt his head into the picture and grin and wave at her.

She waved back, smiling, "This is pretty cool. Reminds me of the one in a movie back in my time. _Beauty and the Beast_."

Sirius gaped, "Get out of here! That's why I thought of this one!"

"What?" she blinked, "The cartoon?"

"Yes!" his eyebrows were climbing his forehead, "Does it have the dancing silverware and stuff?"

"_Yes!_ And the ridiculously arrogant guy?"

"Yeah! And the sparkly rose thing!"

"Exactly!"

Remus laughed at them, smiling, "You two done?"

"Fine," Sirius sighed as James stepped closer and pushed him out of the way, looking at Hermione curiously.

"Hermione, why don't you have any pajamas?" he asked.

Hermione winced, covering her mouth with her hands and glancing back at Remus as he glanced at her.

"C'mon, out with it," James frowned.

Hermione sighed, telling him and Sirius about Christina's assumptions and why she couldn't go back to her dorms. When she was done, the two were gaping at her in disbelief.

"No way," Sirius shook his head, frowning as he did so, "She's nuts!"

"Honestly, who in their right mind would even think that?" James snorted.

"Think what, James?" a female voice asked, making James turn to frown a little at her.

"Somebody at school is thinking that Hermione is more than friends with _all_ of us," he snorted, rolling his eyes.

The woman walked into the picture, blinking at Hermione and Remus. She had graying black hair tied up in a messy bun, wearing a sweater and some jeans before she beamed.

"Lyn! Oh, Lyn, come here!"

"_Mum?_" Remus gaped at James, "My _mother_ is there?"

"Yeah – something about a tree catching on fire or something," James shrugged, "It's still getting sorted out, it'll be fixed soon though."

Another woman walked in, looking questioningly at James's mother. Her blonde hair was tied in a ponytail, wearing a dark green long sleeved dress and some rainbow colored stripped socks. She'd been getting dressed when she'd called, and decided that whatever it was could've seen her knee socks.

She gaped and beamed at Remus, "Is this her? Oh, it's her, isn't it?"

Remus sighed, wincing at his mother, "Yeah, Mum, this is Hermione. Hermione, this is Mum."

"Oh, hi Sweetie!" Lyn waved as James and Sirius handed the mirror to her, the last thing the others saw being their grins, "Aw, you're so pretty!"

Hermione covered her nose and mouth with her hands as she blushed, "Thank you."

"I want to meet you some day," she swore before looking pointedly at Remus, "And we're going to talk later." She suddenly beamed again, "Happy Christmas, you two! Alright, I'll talk to you later!" She handed it back to Sirius as she and Missus Potter edged out of the room.

"Thanks for that," Remus said sarcastically as Sirius beamed.

James chuckled, "Happy Christmas, you two."

"Happy Christmas," they chorused before they were left staring at their reflections. Hermione frowned at hers, tugging a strand of hair back behind her ear before she shrugged and turned to Remus.

"So what all did you get this year?" she asked, lying back on his bed and looking up at him.

"Well, the mirror, James sent me some quills that write down what professors say, Peter got me a book, my parents got me a watch, and the girls sent me a card with money," he shrugged, "What about you?"

"I find it very fascinating that Hogwarts knows which bed I'm in," she hummed, smiling up at him, "I haven't opened them yet. I wanted to give you your present."

She reached into her sleeve, pulling out a rolled up bit of paper and frowning at it as she tossed it aside, reaching back in and smiling when she pulled out the right thing.

He blinked at the chocolate frog, ripping it open and shrugging before he glanced at the card. He gaped at her and looked at her to see that she had a rather sad expression.

"You're on a chocolate frog card?" he held it up, looking at her rather than the card.

She frowned, sitting up and reaching back into her sleeve, "I meant to give you yours."

"_Mine?_ I've got a chocolate frog card?"

"In the future, yes," she frowned and leaned forward, still searching, "Well, I dunno if you still will, but it's a pretty cool thing to have, hmm?"

"What did I do to get a chocolate frog card?" he was still gaping at her as she pulled the frog out and smiled at it.

"For one thing, you were a professor here," she stated, handing it over, "For another, you were a war hero."

"Did I live or die?" he asked warily, eyes narrowed at her to see if she would lie.

"Oh, you died," she winced before shrugging, "But, seeing as I won't let that happen now, it doesn't really matter, hmm? They gave me loads of these things when they had them made. Pointed out who was who and everything for me. I kept a few with me, because I like chocolate, but figured that I'd be able to go back any time I wanted. Obviously, no I won't."

He hummed and nodded, ripping it open and staring at the card. He looked at the picture and winced, a hand creeping up into his own hair as the older version swept his own back. He glanced back up at Hermione, who was watching him.

"It's your card," she told him, as if reading his mind, "You can do whatever you want with it."

"Except," Remus started as he tore the card in two, ripping it up even more as he looked at her, not caring what was on the other side, "I'm not going to let that be me." He saw a corner of her mouth twitch and he grinned, setting the confetti aside and picking up her card, "But I will keep your card though. Nice picture."

She snorted, grabbing a chocolate frog from one of the wrappers and popping into her mouth, rolling her eyes, "If you say so."

"I say so," he said as if it were fact before grabbing the other frog.

* * *

Hermione crawled into bed, exhausted from her day. She, Remus and the sixth year girls had had a snowball war, Olivia being the umpire and diving in on Remus and Hermione's side once Alexis pelted her with a few. They'd then ran from Christina after they'd shot her with a few, skidding into the Great Hall and wincing at each other as they tried to nonchalantly ease their way up the staircase without slipping. They'd sat by the fire in the Common Room after lunch, talking about anything they could think of. Alexis had even asked who thought up clapping, and then if the person was high at the time or not.

So Hermione suddenly remembered her presents at the foot of her borrowed bed, leaning down and grabbing them and towing them up with her, glancing back at the other girls and smiling when she saw they were all asleep.

She carefully opened up the first package, suddenly praying to all deities that this present wouldn't make noise. She breathed a sigh of relief when it was just a book, flipping over the cover and smiling at the message written there.

_Hermione,_

_For all you've been through, and being stuck here without nobody to tell it all about, I figured you might be going a little bit crazy. It's a diary, and don't worry – you're the only one who can read what you write here, nobody else can see it._

_Happy Christmas!_

_James_

She smiled, taking the quill he'd put there as well and twirling it around, smiling as the feathers trailed along slowly like wisps of smoke in the air. She set it back, reaching over and grabbing the four other packages, pulling the curtains back on her bed before quietly ripping open the paper, blinking at the sparkly material, taking the note out and unfolding it.

_Hermione,_

_I thought you'd – cough, cough – forget – cough, cough – to get a dress for Slughorn's Ball. I think you'll look gorgeous in it, and I want pictures. The sparkles can also disappear with a simple charm, so this is a multiple-use dress. Yay for practicality!_

_Happy Christmas, I love you!_

_Emmeline_

Hermione felt herself smiling, setting the dress aside and pulling over the box, mentally congratulating herself for guessing that it was shoes, although she frowned when she realized that they were strappy heels.

_Hermione,_

_Please hear me out on this one. You're going to be inside for the Ball, it'll be warm inside, and these are very cute shoes that don't have as bad of a heel as it could be. And they won't hurt either – that's why I love magic._

_Happy Christmas, lots of love,_

_Lily_

Hermione rolled her eyes and set them aside, pulling the card towards her next.

_Hermione,_

_This is actually a joint present from me and Sirius. **Hi! **We know you'll love this, and it can be used any time you want. **My uncle has a few trustworthy friends there that will show you everything the tours wouldn't. Heck, we'll even go with you if you want.** Or not. We won't feel offended. It is your Christmas present. **Although Moony does know a lot about the city. Use this information for what you will.**_

_Happy Christmas from both of us!_

_All of the love in the world,_

_Alice_

**_I solemnly swear that I am actually up to some good right now,_**

**_Padfoot_**

Hermione blinked at it before shrugging until she realized there was another something inside the envelope it came in. She reached in, blinking at the key in her hand before pulling the slip of paper out with it.

**_Gringotts Wizarding Bank_**

_Hermione Granger's Rome Fund_

_Current Balance: 1,500 Galleons_

"Oh no, you didn't," she whispered quietly to the paper, staring at it wide eyed, "Merlin's beard, you didn't. Oh you _did!_ I love you both!" She covered her mouth with her hands, feeling happy tears spill over from her eyes and drip down her face as she grinned at what her friends had gotten her. She blinked when she saw a little box sitting underneath the paper, picking it up and looking at it curiously before flipping open the lid with her thumb.

She gaped, dropping the box on the bed and staring at it with another grinning forming as she stared at the necklace. It was a silver crescent moon with a star clinging to an end, the chain simple and silver as well.

_Hermione,_

_Happy Christmas_

_Love,_

_Remus_

* * *

"Mmn?" Remus questioned sleepily as a pair of arms hugged him, blinking his eyes open and smiling a little when Hermione grinned at him, pulling his arm over her head so he could look at her.

"Thank you so much," she beamed, reaching back down again and hugging him once more, "Thank you _so much_."

"You're welcome," he smiled back, running a hand through her hair, "You deserved it."

"All I got you was a stupid _card_," she sighed, wincing at him as she pulled back a little.

He shook his head, "I like the card."

"You like _my_ card, the one they took when I was still disoriented from – " she shook her head, "You _hated_ your card."

"I never said that."

"You ripped it up! I never should've given it to you!"

"Hey, now I've got a picture of you," he smiled up at her before sighing, "Hermione, I love the card, I love what you gave me. I never would've known that your favorite book was _Hogwarts: A History_ otherwise."

"You _read it?_"

"Not if I wasn't supposed to," he said, smiling when she shook her head and grinned at him, hugging him yet again.

"Thank you, though, I love it."

"You're welcome," he hugged her back this time, already closing his eyes when she pulled away, so he didn't see her debating with herself before she leaned forward and pecked his forehead.

"Thank you," she said before slipping out of his bed and padding out of the boys' dorms. He'd sat up and watched her go, gaping at her before flopping against his pillow.

"_Why_ did you _do that_, Hermione?" he groaned, rolling over and burying his face into his pillow, although he was smiling.

"Oh, Hermione, why did you do that?" she chastised herself, blushing a little as she made her way up the stairs.

* * *

**Yay! Yes? Right? This is where we say 'yay,' yeah? …Yay?**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	13. The Room of Requirement

**…Let's put this on New Year's Eve, huh? Because why not? **

* * *

"Hermione, are you nearly ready?" Scarlett asked as Hermione frowned at her reflection.

"I look ridiculous," she said, just loud enough for her to hear.

"Well I'd be able to judge that if you'd let me see," she huffed, Hermione sighing and opening the door to step out.

"You look like a princess!" Alexis said happily, beaming at her.

"I look weird," she argued, looking helplessly at the others as she pinned her hair up, a stubborn curl still slipping out.

Olivia shook her head, smiling as she conjured up a sheer white stretch of cloth to hang on her arms, smiling at her as she tilted her head and took in her appearance.

"You look so pretty, Hermione," Scarlett smiled, smoothing down her jeans as she perched on the edge of the bed.

"I feel so – "

"Ab-bub!" Alexis shushed her with a frown, "You're a princess."

"But – "

"_Princess._"

She blinked at her before sighing, turning to Olivia and rolling her eyes, "Honestly?"

"Honestly, I really do think you look pretty," she smiled.

"Hey, did you lay this out to wear it or is it for me?" Scarlett questioned, laying back on the bed with her legs dangling as she lazily twirled around a necklace.

"I'm wearing it," she smiled back, taking the necklace from her and clipping it behind her neck.

"I'm ready when you are," Olivia said, fixing her burnt orange dress and smiling at the other girls as she and Hermione walked out of the dorms.

* * *

"Miss Lewis, Miss Granger!" Hermione was already wincing before she turned around and plastered the fake grin on her face.

"Professor Slughorn," she smiled now, glad to know that after this she'd be able to sneak away.

"I'm so glad I found you two – there are quite a few people I'd like you to meet, especially you, Miss Granger – you're graduating this year, after only being with us for one! Tell me, where were you before this?"

"Oh, it was a very small, insignificant school," she shrugged, "Hogwarts is much better."

"Indeed! I'll be right back!" he nodded before walking away.

Hermione sighed and leaned against the table, sharing a glance with Olivia before she jumped when somebody grabbed her hand, whirling around and looking wide eyed at Remus.

"Did I scare you?" he asked with a grin.

She pouted, crossing her arms over her chest, "No, I just wasn't expecting you."

"Ahh," he chuckled, "Did you talk with Slughorn?"

"Yeah, I'm ready to leave, you?"

"Definitely."

"But Professor Slughorn said he wanted us to meet people," Olivia blinked, "What if…?"

"Ahh! Mister Lupin! Glad to see you get along with your Potions partner so well!" Slughorn said, beaming happily at him as somebody trailed along behind him.

"Oh, yeah, ahh," Remus blanched at her before blinking, tilting his head and looking at her curiously before smiling, "Yeah, we're pretty good friends."

Hermione and Olivia looked at him strangely as he reached over and took Hermione's hand.

"Actually, Professor Slughorn, would you mind too much if I stole Hermione for a few moments? There's something I want to discuss with her."

"Oh, of course," he waved them away, turning to Olivia, who was smiling as she watched them go.

"What was that?" Hermione asked as Remus led her through the crowd, still gripping her hand.

"I wanted to get away from Slughorn," he shrugged.

"No, that look you gave me."

He looked over his shoulder and grinned at her, giving her hand a squeeze, "You're wearing it."

"Of course I'm wearing it," she frowned, "I've worn it every single day."

"Well, you've worn sweaters every single day," he shrugged, still smiling, "And it threw me off."

She only shook her head at him, smiling as she let him lead her to the door. They glanced back at Slughorn to make sure he wasn't looking and slipped through the door, dashing up to the Common Room and making Alexis stop a stopwatch.

"Wow, only thirty minutes total!" she smiled, impressed as Hermione frowned and took off the shoes, dropping them on the floor and flopping into a nearby chair with a sigh. "New record, Remus!"

He grinned at her, "Brilliant, managed to make one on the last time."

"Are you sad you're leaving this year?" she asked.

He thought about it, glancing back at Hermione to see that she had an eye cracked open to look at him, "There are mixed feelings. Glad to be rid of school work but sad that I won't get to go back to Hogwarts after this."

"Oh, I dunno," Hermione shrugged, "You could be a teacher."

"I thought he already was one?" she arched an eyebrow as Scarlett dropped down onto the couch next to her.

"So you just left Olivia down there to fend for herself?" she asked.

"She should be fine," Remus shrugged, leaning against the couch before Hermione popped up from attempting to fall asleep with a gasp, eyes wide as they looked at her curiously.

"Oh _shit_, I forgot, how could I forget?" she questioned, putting the shoes back on and running out of the portrait.

"Wait, Hermione, what are you talking about?" Remus asked, getting up to follow her.

Alexis and Scarlett were silent for a few moments before the former turned to her companion.

"Think they're gonna go snog?" she asked, making her gape at her friend.

"Alexis!" she admonished, "No! Why would you think that?"

"They need to snog," she shrugged, hanging upside down, "Get rid of some of the sexual tension that's in the room with them."

Scarlett snorted and grinned, but said nothing to disagree with her.

* * *

"Hermione, stop," Remus ordered sternly, grabbing her wrist and twirling her around to look at him, "What's going on?"

She bit her lip, looking at him as she thought it over before leading him along, twisting her wrist in his grasp to grab his hand, "Well, Harry, Ron and I had to find Horcruxes, which are parts of someone's soul. And You-Know-Who had seven. One of them is in the castle, and I completely forgot that it was here until a few moments ago."

"Part of You-Know-Who's soul is in Hogwarts?" Remus asked, "But how are we going to destroy it? They're extremely hard to do and extremely hard to get rid of."

"That," she blanched, "Is an entirely different thing. But we'll talk about that later."

He arched an eyebrow but let it go, making sure to remember to talk to her about that. She stopped, making him bump into her as she turned and looked at him curiously, which he could only grin sheepishly at before she positioned him by the wall, walking on in front of where the Room of Requirement was. He watched her go, leaning against the corner of the wall as he finally took in her appearance.

The dress was sleeveless and short in the front, stopping at her knees while it cut down to her calf and was a dark midnight blue that looked like the night sky, the sparkles on it were stars. She looked annoyed at either herself or the Horcrux or both, but she was beautiful. He probably could've stared at her all night and would've been fine with it.

"You should wear your hair up more," he told her, making her falter in her steps and blink as she looked at him, a faint blush on her cheeks.

"What?" she asked, wringing her hands together.

He shrugged, starting to blush as well, "I just…it looks nice on you. I can see your face."

She blushed a bit more and smiled, "Thank you."

He smiled back as she walked on, shaking her head and getting the determined look on her face. He inwardly snorted. Here they were, attempting to eradicate a piece of a dark wizard's soul, which would no doubt be hard to do and would be possibly dangerous, and he was telling her he liked her hair.

_Teenagers_.

After a few more steps, the door opened, making her slip in and wave Remus along as well. He blinked at the mountains of clutter, chairs and desks and anything you could think of being stuffed there.

Hermione changed her shoes into flats to work, walking towards one of the piles and frowning as she thought.

"What does it look like, anyway?" he asked, rolling up his sleeves.

"A crown," she told him, closing her eyes and trying to think, "Rowena's diadem."

He blinked, gaping, "Ravenclaw's lost diadem? It's been here all this time?"

"Yeah," she shrugged, grabbing on to one of the desks that was sticking out and giving a tug. Finding it was sturdy, she pulled her upper half up and was about to twist around to pull the rest of her up when Remus grabbed her waist and helped her up, which made her blush and turn her face to the clutter so he couldn't see. "Ahh, thanks."

"No problem," he said before he hopped up with her with ease, making her frown at him as he grinned cheekily at her, "Do you remember where it is?"

"Harry found it," she shook her head, "But we were nearly to the top of this one…I think."

"At least it's better than Slughorn's party," he grinned as he stood, offering his hand to her to help her up higher.

She laughed and took it, climbing up higher and higher, frowning when she got to the top and didn't find it.

"It's not up here," she sighed, looking down at Remus and trying to ignore how far away the ground was. She huffed, gasping when she lost her footing and the stuff wobbled a bit the other way, closing her eyes and waiting for impact when Remus reached up and grabbed her, yanking her down into him as they fell back on the desk.

Remus gasped when he felt the wind get knocked out of him, wincing from the pain in his elbow as he looked up and stopped at the pair of eyes, which were looking down at him.

They laid there staring at each other for what could've been a few moments or a few years. It was only when something shiny caught Hermione's eye that she looked away, beaming as she reached for the diadem. She completely missed Remus's sigh and disappointed look as she sat up and grinned at the crown.

"Brilliant!" she stood and turned down to him, still smiling, although on the inside she was screaming.

"Yeah," he grinned as he sat up, watching as she flung her legs over the side and slid down, squeaking when she hit the ground and stumbled a bit. He jumped off, landing and grinning at her as she tried not to smile. "C'mon, I think it's almost midnight."

She nodded and walked out after him, biting her lip as she looked back at the desk and what she could've done.

* * *

**Is this fluff or what? I want fluff. I dunno if that was the outcome or not.**

**Hey hey hey, how many of you know when my birthday is?**

**_It's New Year's Eve. c: _**

**I thought I should share that with you.**

**Oh, and I'm trying to draw fanart for my own stuff.**

**Is this working? No, probably not. **

**Love,**

**Ava**


	14. The Smack Down

**Ummm…*shrug***

* * *

"I missed you!" Sirius exclaimed, running forward and picking her up, twirling Hermione around as she winced.

"I missed you too, put me down," she asked as Remus walked up to them and began to laugh as Sirius only held her tighter.

"Hey, Hermione, good break?" James asked, ruffling up her hair as Peter waved to her.

"Mostly," she shrugged.

"Oh, right, Christina," James hummed, "We'll think of something by lunch, don't worry."

"Might even set it off at dinner," Peter smiled brightly, making Sirius beam happily at the idea of a prank.

"What?" Lily asked skeptically, making Sirius and the other Marauders turn to her, although Sirius was the only one who flung his arms out and happily screamed "Evans!" This was a terrible idea, as he dropped Hermione onto the platform, making her cry out and glare at him as James gaped at him with Remus, Lily and Peter.

"You dropped Hermione!" James accused as Peter hid his face behind his hands, trying not to grin.

"I didn't mean it!" Sirius cried as she stood, dusting off her jeans as she continued to glare at him. "I'm sorry!"

"I'll forgive you _if_ you do it," she smirked as he started to beam again.

"Hermione, what's going on?" Lily asked, "What are you talking about?"

"I'll tell you inside," she waved it away as Remus frowned over at Christina as she whispered to a few Slytherins, who shot scandalized looks over at the group.

"Can't wait for dinner," Remus muttered as James caught the sight as well.

"Who says we've got to wait?" Sirius smirked, pointing his wand at Christina and flicking it before stowing it away. Christina then promptly tripped and fell onto the platform, making Hermione light up with a grin as Lily gaped at him.

"What did you do that for?" she asked loudly as they began to shush her.

"C'mon," Hermione began, starting to tug her away, although she fought, "Lily _come on_! I'll tell you, Emmeline and Alice when we get away!"

This made the redhead blink and follow, the two grabbing the other girls along the way and towing them along as they squawked inquiries.

Sirius laughed and shook his head, flinging an arm around Remus's shoulders and leaning against him, "Y'know, Moony, I think we're about to have some adventures today."

He grinned, shrugging a little, "We're the Marauders – it's just a regular day for us."

"True!" James laughed.

* * *

"So what's supposed to happen and when?" Hermione whispered to Remus, glancing down the table at Christina, trying to ignore the prying gazes of her classmates.

"Watch," he whispered back, patting her hand, smirking as she shot him an irritated frown, "Patience, little one."

Hermione wrinkled her nose and stuck her tongue out at him, which made him laugh and grin at her, reaching out to try and mess up her hair, although she leaned away from him and grabbed his arm to try and deflect it. Remus didn't even jump when he heard the shriek, only turned and tried not to smile as Christina screamed over being turned green.

"Mister Potter! Mister Black!" McGonagall yelled, marching her way over to the table, "Mister Lupin and Mister Pettigrew! What is the meaning of turning Miss Vluent _green_?"

"What?" James blinked, standing with the other Marauders, "We didn't do it."

"Yeah, Professor," Sirius frowned, "We didn't."

"What would be the point of it?" Remus asked, "We haven't got any grudge against her."

"Not that we know of, of course," Peter shrugged.

"However, if she thinks we've got one against her, I'd love to hear it," James turned to Christina, who was glaring at them.

She growled, clenching her fists, but said nothing.

"Fine," McGonagall pursed her lips, "Miss Vluent, go to Madame Pomfrey to get your skin tone back to normal." She walked back to the professor's table, muttering about the four boys.

"You look very nice as a plant, Christina," Sirius smirked down at her.

She growled low, "You only did this for your little _slut_ of a girlfriend."

"Hermione!" Lily yelped as Hermione stood abruptly, stepping towards Christina with a glare as Sirius and James panicked and moved out of her way, although Remus stepped halfway in the way and looked at her pleadingly, begging her not to do anything stupid.

"I have no idea what your problem is with me, I've never done anything to you," Hermione told the girl, "But if you think for even a second that I'll let you get away with it, you are dead wrong."

"Are you _threatening _me?" she asked.

"I'm seriously thinking about it," she frowned, hands on her hips as she glared at her.

Christina's eyes flashed before Emmeline and Alice slid up next to Hermione, startling her as they wrapped their arms around her shoulders, making a strange sort of line.

"You know, Alice, I think it's funny that Christina called our little Hermione a slut," Emmeline laughed.

"Especially since she hasn't been in the dorms since third year!" Alice said brightly – and loudly – giving Hermione a friendly smile before smirking at Christina, whose bright green paled at that.

"And I think it's hilarious how she thinks Hermione can't kick her arse in – oh – anything," Lily shrugged, stepping up to her friends and smirking.

"It's just a bloody riot!" Emmeline laughed, "I mean, Hermione who blushes at the very idea of kissing anybody – "

"Shut up, I do not," Hermione interrupted, her cheeks starting to pink.

" – is a _slut?_" Emmeline finished.

"What strange universe are we in?" Lily asked, a hand pressed to her cheek as she gaped at Alice, who gaped back at her.

"Look, Sweetheart, I know we've known you longer, but that doesn't mean we like you better," Emmeline frowned, "If you go and hurt our friend again, we certainly won't hold her back."

"Now run along to your little snakies and prim and priss over your scales," Alice waved her along, smiling as she glared and stomped her way out of the Great Hall.

"Oh I love you," Hermione tugged the girls in for a hug, Alice towing Lily into it, "You're all bloody brilliant."

"Hey, us lionesses have to stick together," Alice shrugged, hugging her again, "Oh, Sweetie, I love you too, don't ever let anybody bring you down."

"That was awesome," James finally said, gaping with his hand in his hair. Sirius was beaming, bouncing on the ball of his feet as Peter stared at the girls with wide eyes. Remus chuckled and hid his grin, both at his friends and the girls.

"Hey," Lily shrugged, "If Hermione hadn't had threatened her, we certainly would've."

"You ever wonder if we're like the female equivalent of them?" Emmeline asked, jabbing her thumb at the boys.

The group looked between each other before snorting and shaking their heads, going back to the table to eat.

"Minerva, did you see that?" Pomona asked, turning to her colleague.

"What? Oh, no, I didn't," she blinked, taking a sip of her drink, "My mind had wandered."

Dumbledore chuckled at that, making her glance at him and smile a little. She glanced at the hourglass filled with red and barely whispered, "_Five points to Gryffindor for defending others._" Slughorn glanced at her and tried to frown, but it ended up a very strange smile as she regained her stern expression and lowered her glass.

* * *

"I loved it when she asked if you were threatening her," James grinned as he hung upside down from the chair, "I mean, _obviously_ you were."

Hermione blushed, biting her lip as she nervously pulled her hair back and up on top of her head, tying it into place, "I don't know what I was thinking. Professors and everybody were watching and I just…didn't care."

"She totally deserved it," Alice snorted, shaking her head as she dropped a few pieces of candy into her mouth, "I hate her so much."

"Hey, Hermione!" Scarlett called from across the room, "You're my hero!"

"Go Hermione!" Alexis cheered, making her laugh and grin at the girls, as did a few of the other Gryffindors.

"We need a Hermione Fanclub!" Emmeline yelled at the room.

"We can have a kitten on our flag!" Sirius said excitedly, "What's your favorite color?"

"Blue?" Hermione was laughing while she blushed.

"A kitten on a blue flag, somebody make that," he grinned at her.

"On it! C'mon Olivia!" Alexis yelled, running up the staircase.

"Is she really?" Lily asked, starting to smile, "Oh, is she really?"

"Alexis, don't you dare!" Hermione yelled, running after her as the others began to laugh.

A few hours later, she came down the staircase carefully, tiptoeing down as she gripped her wand tightly, biting her lip.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked loudly from the couch, making her eyes widen and give a little shriek before she slapped her hands over her mouth, staring at him as he grinned with the other Marauders.

"Hermione?" Remus prompted, "Where _are_ you going?"

She flung her hands behind her back, eyes still wide as she quickly said, "Nowhere."

He arched an eyebrow, looking over her to see that she was in jeans and a hoodie, a beaded bag in her other hand. She bit her lip again, looking between him and James, who looked suspiciously at her as well.

"Hermione," he stood, walking over to her, except she was edging towards the portrait, "What are you planning to do?"

"Nothing!" she insisted, still going towards the portrait.

"Is it with the Horcrux?"

"Remus!"

"It is!"

"Question!" Sirius raised his hand, waving it a little, "What is a Horcrux?"

"I'll explain on the way – lead on," Remus said, pushing Hermione along with a hand on her back.

"What, no, Remus!" she argued, frowning at him, "You aren't coming."

"Then you aren't going," he frowned back, crossing his arms over his chest.

"You aren't the boss of me!" she glared.

"True, very true, but I'm not about to let you go and get yourself killed," he said, "Hermione, nobody ever says what happens when you destroy one. You could die for all I know."

"I've destroyed these before, remember?" she hissed, "We didn't _die_."

"Hey, we're confused over here," James interrupted.

"Hermione," Remus said sternly.

"Remus," she mimicked.

"_Hermione_."

She glared at him before sighing, running a hand through her hair, "Fine. You're telling them though."

He grinned, ruffling up her hair, "Thank you."

"Blagh," she wrinkled her nose at him, waving him off.

* * *

"So you want to go into a giant killer snake's pit to kill it and get a tooth from the dead body of the giant killer snake to kill a crown," Sirius said, looking at her blankly as Peter tried to wave off Moaning Myrtle.

"Makes perfect sense!" James exclaimed with a grin.

"That's why I didn't want you lot coming with me," Hermione frowned at Remus, "You can't get hurt."

"And neither can you," he frowned back.

"No, seriously, _you can't get hurt_," she arched her eyebrows, "I don't care what happens to me, I'm not even supposed to exist, but if you – if any of you – get hurt, then everything will just go…BOOM!" She spread her hands out, still looking at Remus pointedly, "Do you get that?"

"So, killer snake?" he smirked as she growled at him.

"We can't let it out now," she shook her head, "For one thing, I don't know how to open it. Parseltongue opens it."

"He speaks _parseltongue?_" James exclaimed, eyes wide as she glared at him, "Right, sorry, go on."

"For another, if I open it, it's going to try to kill us all," she sighed, tying her hair up again, "I wanted to see if there were spells to trap it in this bathroom. I've got a load of books in my bag."

"You mean in this thing?" Peter asked incredulously, holding up the bag.

She managed a smile, "Yes, in that. Also, I don't know how I'm going to kill it. Harry did it all on his own, I was stuck up in the Hospital Wing, petrified. I don't really know what happened there, all I know is he killed the basilisk with Godric Gryffindor's sword."

"Awesome," James and Sirius chorused.

"So there are all my bundles of problems, you wasted your time," Hermione turned to Remus and looked at him pointedly.

"You weren't really," he frowned dully at her, "You were going to try and defeat it yourself."

"How do you know?" she asked.

"There's a sword in your bag," Peter pointed out dully.

She blinked at them before growling at Remus, "Oh shut it."

He chuckled, leaning forward and tucking a curl behind her ear, "Deal with it, Hermione, we're helping whether you want it or not."

She sighed, rolling her eyes and smiling fondly at him, "Thank you, I think."

"You're welcome," he smiled back, "C'mon, we'll help you read through the books."

"You don't have to do that," she blinked.

"Hey, who doesn't want to read about spells to trap giant killer snakes in bathrooms?" Sirius shrugged, grinning as he, Remus and Peter walked out of the bathroom, Peter with his face down in the bag.

"Hey, Hermione, can I talk to you for a minute?" James asked, eyebrows furrowed, "I know Harry is my son – he's got to be, but…."

"James?" she prodded, "What is it?"

"Who is his mother?" he winced, "I know you shouldn't really tell me, but…I just…."

"James," she said, "I can't tell you. I'm sorry, but I just…."

"Well…can you talk to Lily, at least? Make her at least consider giving me a go?" he asked as she blinked, "Even if I don't marry her, I'd still like to know what it's like. Being with Lily Evans. I bet it'd be bloody brilliant."

She smiled, "I'll see what I can do, James."

"Thanks," he grinned back before holding the door out for her, both of them quietly making their way down the hall.

* * *

**(Did this chapter even make any sense to you guys? I'm really tired and have no idea if I even typed it right or if I just repeatedly typed "pink purple polka-dotted penguin.")**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	15. The Basilisk Hunt

**_Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets_**** is on ABC Family, currently watching it! Apparently, it's another Harry Potter weekend. Of course, I'm not complaining. (Is it weird that I'm watching this one while typing this chapter? I think that's a little too coincidental….)**

* * *

Hermione frowned, biting her lip as she looked through her books, finding which ones she'd need for homework and which ones she could put in her bag when somebody lifted her up and she was crashed into a chest.

"Oh, you're brilliant!" James crowed, hugging her tightly as she finally noticed she was on a broom, "Absolutely brilliant!"

"James, put me down!" she said, clinging tighter onto his shirt and staring wide eyed at the ground.

"Oh, right, sorry!" he swooped to the ground and let her hop off, standing and hugging her once more as she squeaked.

"James, what's going on?" she questioned, although she already had a faint idea.

"You are brilliant, that's what!" he exclaimed with a brightly lit smile, "Lily agreed to go out with me! Me, James Potter! Me, Hermione, me!"

She heard Sirius's laugh as she pulled back and grinned at him before hugging him back, "Well of course she agreed to go out with you, James, all she needed was a little shove."

"What do you mean of course?" he asked, pulling back and tilting his head before he lit up again, "You mean…?"

"Shh," she hissed, although she was grinning as he picked her up and twirled her around.

"I think you just made his day, Hermione," Sirius commented as Remus picked James's broom off of the ground.

"Try his whole year," Remus laughed as Hermione finally pulled away from him and started to pick up her books and bag. James was still grinning at her happily and bouncing as Sirius and Remus helped her pick up her books.

"So what are you doing for your date?" Remus asked, handing James his broom and carrying some of Hermione's books as she tried to stuff some in her bag. Sirius promptly dropped his pile of books onto Remus's, making him frown at him but say nothing.

James stopped bouncing and looked at him blankly, "What?"

"You don't know what you're doing for your date with Lily?" Sirius asked with arched eyebrows, "I thought you would've planned out your wedding by this time!"

"Crap," James's hands flew to his hair, "What do I do? What do I do?"

Hermione dropped her bag and stepped over to James, tugging his hands out of his hair and fixing it, "You are going to take her to the Three Broomsticks, as she hates Madame Puddifoot's – and really, who could blame her? All that pink and hearts and stuff and it's not even Valentine's Day – and then you are going to talk her leg off and bond and everything, and try not to be a prat around her."

"Oh yeah, it's on Valentine's Day this year," Sirius hummed before bumping Hermione's hip with his, glancing back at Remus, "Do you have any valentines in the wings, Hermione?"

She snorted, rolling her eyes and picking up her bag, taking her books from Remus with a smile, "Not that I'm aware of. Thank you, Remus."

"No problem," he smiled back.

"So, any luck on the you-know-what?" James asked.

She grimaced, "I'll tell you later. In fact, I was hoping we could go tonight. Remus and I, even Peter helped us, we looked through some of the books and found a few dozen curses to keep it trapped in the bathroom."

James nodded before grinning again, swooping down and pecking her on the cheek as he ruffled up her hair, "Did I tell you you're brilliant?"

"Yes, now stop it," she frowned, waving him away, although as she walked off there was a pleased smile on her face, glad to help her friends.

* * *

"Why a sword?" James asked as he twirled the weapon around as Hermione paced around the bathroom, muttering under her breath as she waited for Sirius to get out of detention.

"That's how Harry killed the basilisk," she shrugged, "The Sorting Hat gave him Godric Gryffindor's sword."

"How did you get it?" Remus asked.

"Dumbledore is letting me borrow it," she shrugged, "I got it when I was Sorted in this time. Of course, I've got to give it back, so I can't use it to kill all the other Horcruxes, that's why I need the teeth."

"Wait, pause," James shook his head, "_Other_ Horcruxes? There's more than that little crowny thing?"

"Umm, about five more, I believe," she winced before shrugging, "I remember where most of them are. Mostly."

James gaped as Sirius slid into the room, crunching an apple, "Evenin'."

Hermione glared at him, her hands on her hips, "Sirius Black…."

He caught the glare and swallowed the last bit of the apple, chucking the core in a wastebasket, "What? I missed dinner. Detention, remember?" He pulled something out of his pocket, handing it to her, "Love me, Granger, for I did a lot for you."

She smiled and took it, smiling at the golden liquid, "Brilliant, thank you, Sirius."

"I thought you got detention for putting something in Snape's potion?" Peter asked.

"I did, but I served detention with Slughorn," Sirius grinned, "That man is practically blind."

"Here," Hermione held out the vial to Remus, "Take it."

"And this is…?" he prompted, eyeing it curiously, wondering if it was safe to take if Sirius had gotten a hold of it.

"Felix Felicis," she blushed as he turned and grinned at her, "Well, it's best to be safe than sorry." Remus took a sip and held it out to Sirius, who waved him away.

"Had some," he shrugged, "So, who's ready to kill a giant snake?"

"First things first," Hermione said as James passed it on to Peter, "Keep your eyes on the ground. If you hear _anything_, shut your eyes. Listen. And please try not to die."

"Got it," James nodded, offering her the sword. She shook her head, telling him to keep it up until they got there.

Hermione turned to the sinks, wincing as she bit her lip, "The only tricky part I've got is _opening_ it. Like I said, it takes Parseltongue, and I don't know any. Ron knew some, only what Harry said in his sleep, but…."

Sirius sighed, pushing her out of the way and wincing, "You know how my family has always been in Slytherin, and are really crazy and everything?" At her nod, he hung his head, "I'm not proud. I'm really not. But, my parents – barmy people – thought that our chances of getting into Slytherin would be better if me and my brother learned some Parseltongue. I only remember one, it was 'apple,' I think, but…."

"That's helpfully insane!" Hermione beamed, "Try it?"

Sirius nodded, running his hands through his hair as he stepped up to the sink, hissing as James stuffed his fist into his mouth and tried not to laugh before the sinks began to descend into the floor. Sirius let out a dramatic sob and leaned against Hermione, who patted his head and grinned at him.

"Well done, Sirius, thank you."

"Oh, I hate that I know it," he sniffed, grimacing at James as he patted him on the back, "I really do."

"It's okay, Padfoot, we don't think of you any differently," James reassured, "Now let's go kill a snake."

After the drop down, the group cautiously made their way through the tunnel, Remus's wand lighting their way as Hermione whispered to herself, recounting what Harry and Ron had told her, trying to smile at the part where Lockhart's Memory Charm had backfired, but even then it was a forced effort. Her heart was thudding in her throat, but the boys looked completely at ease with trekking through a slimy dark tunnel in a search for a killer snake. They were more than likely doing it for her sake, showing that they weren't scared. Remus's hand kept brushing against hers, and she was thankful that he was reminding her that they were there with her.

Harry and Ron might've been her boys first, but the Marauders were quickly finding their places in that category as well. She'd hate for any of them to get injured or worse.

"Umm," James winced at the statues of the snakes, a split in the middle that would no doubt open, "How do we open it?"

"Sirius?" Hermione whispered, biting her lip as he nodded and said 'apple' again in Parseltongue. The snakes' eyes glittered before sliding open, hissing that didn't come from Sirius erupting, making everybody shut their eyes and Hermione grip onto Remus's hand, her heart sprinting. She took a few deep breaths, slipping her hand away from Remus's and fluttering her eyes open, looking at the scales slithering against the dark stones, watching the tongue dart and flick in the air before it slipped back in.

"James," she whispered, reaching past Remus with her hand out, "Sword."

"Err – right," he said, jerking it up too quickly and hitting her palm, making her hiss in pain and have the boys jerk their eyes open to look at her worriedly, James paling and opening his mouth for an apology when she shook her head and gripped the handle, taking it away from him.

The snake lunged and she screamed, ducking out of the way as the four boys scattered. The basilisk seemed to know that the shiny thing was a weapon and aimed towards her, where she raised the sword and waited until she saw its fangs, closing her eyes and jabbing the sword. She grimaced when she heard the wet sound the sword made as it sunk into the gums, gagging when she heard the scraping sound of the fang against the metal as she pried the tooth away from the flesh, the basilisk hissing angrily at her before the fang finally hit the stone flooring. It reared, ready to strike before it felt something on its head.

James was hanging on for dear life, cursing at himself before catching Hermione's eye. "This is stupid, isn't it?" he yelled.

"Very, Prongs!" Sirius yelled, climbing up with him with his wand in his hand, looking very squeamish at what they were about to do.

"Don't be idiots, do it quickly!" Remus shouted as he threw pieces of crushed rock at the basilisk's head, aiming for an eye. He shouted victoriously as he finally hit his mark, the snake shaking its head and flailing James and Sirius around. It caught sight of Hermione and slithered towards her, making her shut her eyes tighter and back against the wall, the sword still in her hand as she muttered what Harry had said.

"Fawkes," she breathed as she finally remembered, "Fawkes was here. Harry got hurt and Fawkes was here."

"_Shit!_" James cursed, "My wand!"

She opened her eyes a fraction, seeing that James was hanging by a scale beside it's neck, one eye streaming with blood as Sirius tried furiously to work his wand out, the other still being hit with spells now, it being shut as Peter darted around, trying to divert it's attention as he screamed and flailed with his eyes shut.

_He needs it_, a voice whispered in her ear, sounding neither male nor female, without a body, _Throw it to him. He'll catch it._

"James!" Hermione yelled, the snake turning towards the sound, "Catch!"

"Are you throwing a _sword?_" Remus asked incredulously as James nodded.

"This girl is bloody wicked," Sirius said, still trying to jerk the wand out.

She took a deep breath and threw, James reaching out to grab it, his hand working around the handle as he reared back, both hands on the sword as the snake turned towards James, it's mouth open as James lunged and stuck the sword in the roof of its mouth, it flailing wildly and knocking both boys off of him, Sirius giving a victorious shout as his wand came free but yelping as he hit the ground. Remus grabbed his collar and jerked him out of the way as the snake hit the ground, thrashing. It stopped, twitching a little as the five panted and stared at it.

James laughed first, a wide grin stretching his face as Hermione sighed and slid down the wall, a grin on her face as well.

"Brilliant!" Sirius cheered, pumping his good arm as Remus twisted and turned to try to get to the bad one, which was hard as Sirius was bouncing and swaying in his own little dance.

"Padfoot, stand still!" he laughed, feeling like he was on top of the world as Hermione laughed when James dragged her up and began to waltz her around.

"Bad snake!" Peter yelled before kicking it in its side, screaming when it twitched and running away before he remembered that it was really dead. They laughed at him as Remus fixed Sirius's arm, the two boys high-fiving and beaming at each other.

"Come on, let's go get some sleep," James suggested, bending down to hand the fang to Hermione, who slipped it into her bag and took the sword back, smiling at James as they made their way back through the pipes, the group grimacing at their reflections but shrugging it off.

Hermione stopped before they reached the bathroom doors, wincing at her reflection. She was covered in dirt, her clothing torn a bit and her cheek bleeding a little, as was her hand. The Marauders seemed to be in the same state, their reflections blinking curiously back at her. "How am I going to face the girls? They'll be curious, and I…."

"Spend the night with us," Sirius suggested, "Tell them you were studying with us and fell asleep."

She thought it over and nodded, smiling as they pushed the doors open and promptly froze.

McGonagall gaped at them, her eyes wide at the state of her students. Dumbledore blinked as well, Filch and Mrs. Norris glaring at them as Slughorn, Professor Sprout and Professor Flitwick looked at them mildly.

Hermione gaped at them a little, gripping the handle of the sword with both hands as she glanced at the Marauders, her expression mimicked on their faces, "Well…shit."

* * *

**Not exactly a cliffhanger but whatever. **

**I got out my Chamber of Secrets books. It's paperback, so it's got creases in the cover from when I moved copious amounts of times and when I took it to school because nobody talked to me at lunch. There are memories packed in these things.**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	16. The Destruction

**I knew exactly how to write this chapter but when it came to sitting down and actually _doing it_, I just kind of…didn't. I watched _the Brady Bunch Movie_ with my dad and mom. I always felt sorry for Jan…But the actress just made her creepy. **

* * *

"Sneaking around at night, _weapons_ in school, endangering not only the rest of the school _but yourselves!_" McGonagall shouted, the students' heads lowered as they were berated, the sword in Hermione's lap as Remus nudged her elbow with his, shooting a glance to her and smiling when she looked at him gratefully.

"Professor," Dumbledore said from the other side of the desk, peering at the four boys and girl over his glasses, "I'll let you get back to yelling at them in a few moments, but if I could have a few words with them…?"

She took in several deep breaths, looking like she was about to turn purple for a moment before she nodded curtly, "I'll talk to you five after class tomorrow."

"Yes ma'am," they mumbled, heads still lowered as she walked out of the room.

"What you did was, in a sense, foolish," Dumbledore told them, "But you did it with intelligence. It was a very well thought-out plan. Although I don't believe Professor Slughorn appreciates having a potion stolen from him."

Sirius winced and sunk a little lower in his seat.

"I admire you for your bravery and keeping your heads in a situation such as that," he smiled as they tentatively raised their heads and looked at him curiously, "Miss Granger, you're a magnificent general." He grinned a little as he saluted her, making her smile a little, "Now, if you'd please, I'd like the sword back, if you're done with it."

"Oh," she jumped, as if she'd just remembered she was still holding a sword dripping with basilisk blood, "Right." She stood and bit her lip, handing the sword to him as he took it and placed it on his desk, acting like it was completely fine to have it mess up his papers, which were no doubt important.

"Now I think you five should hurry along to bed with – oh, let's say – twenty points each for Gryffindor." They grinned as the rest stood, "And stay safe! I imagine some of the other Gryffindors are going to attempt to ambush you!"

* * *

"Hermione!" Alice and Emmeline yelped, racing towards her and getting lost in the sea of other students who surrounded her and the Marauders.

"Hermione! James!" Lily stood, trying to get through as well, the three completely missing Hermione slip up the boys' staircase with Remus following.

"James Potter!" Lily said once she broke through, making him blink down at her and grin sheepishly.

"Aha – Lily, err," he winced, "Hi."

"I _just_ agreed to go out with you, you _can't_ go and try to get yourself killed!" she yelled at him as he stared blankly at her, "Are you alright? Merlin, are you bleeding?"

He blinked and started to grin, Sirius snickering, "Oh, yeah, I'm fine." He touched his head, looking curiously at his hand, "Oh, that isn't mine."

"Whose is it?" Alice asked.

"Err – " he and Sirius winced, sharing glances. Emmeline grabbed Sirius's hair, taking him down and towing him to the couch as he complained that it hurt.

"Tell me," she said, shoving him into the couch and sitting next to him before somebody else could make it to the seat. Lily looked pointedly at James as he sat in the chair and winced at Sirius.

"Umm…Remus and Hermione read about the basilisk and the Chamber of Secrets in a book," Peter offered before looking blankly at the other two.

* * *

"Hermione?" Remus asked as Hermione kneeled on the floor and dug around in her bag up to her shoulder, head tilted as if she would dive in to stretch farther.

"Hah!" she lit up, grinning at him as she pulled the diadem and the fang out, setting the former on the floor and gripping the fang. Remus kneeled across from her, worry showing on his face.

"Hermione, do you know what this is going to do?" he asked as he saw hesitation flit across her face, watching as she bit her lip.

"Umm," she winced, "Well, no…."

"What happened with the others you killed?" he asked.

"The umm…the wave crashed over us after it," she felt her face heating up, embarrassment and guilt pooling in her stomach as she remembered that awkward spur-of-the-moment-in-the-middle-of-a-war-thinking-they-were-going-to-die kiss with Ronald that had only lasted a few seconds. Guilt shouldn't have been there. She'd told James the exact same thing and had only felt embarrassed. "I only killed the cup. Harry and Ron killed the others."

He looked at the diadem, curiosity and suspicion on his face before he looked up at her and shrugged. She took a deep breath and nodded, gripping the fang and raising it, hissing coming from the diadem as a figure erupted from the jewel on top, splitting into two and growing into full sized people.

Hermione's eyes widened and she faltered, Remus watching through the nearly transparent green figures as she fought with herself.

"You won't save us," one said dully, arms crossed, "Don't even understand why you're trying."

"Honestly, Harry, we should've let the troll get her in first year," another spat, "Frizzy haired little freak."

"We were only ever friends with you because we felt _sorry_ for you," the first, Harry, said as Remus stood and began to make his way towards Hermione, watching her face as pain shown through.

"Bossy swot," the second said, sneering, "Did you ever think we could ever date, even for a second? Nobody can _stand_ you! What makes you think anybody would ever think of touching you? As if you were appealing?"

"And you thought we actually liked you?" Harry asked as tears started to spill over, the fang falling from her hands and onto the floor as she covered her mouth, "We only ever hung out with you because you did our homework for us."

"Shut it," Hermione said weakly, still staring at the figures and not paying any attention to Remus, therefore the figures didn't notice Remus grabbing the fang before he lunged for the diadem, stabbing it as the figures yelled at him in pain.

The diadem thudded against the ground, what looked like blood erupting from where he'd stabbed it, but he didn't care as he reached for Hermione and sat back at the foot of his bed, pulling her into his lap and holding her, watching the diadem until it was stilled before turning to the girl in his arms.

"Shh, Hermione," he murmured to her as she gripped his shirt and whimpered against him, "I'm here, I've got you. I'm here, Hermione, _I'm here_."

"They – they were my friends," she muttered to him, burying her face in his shirt, "Harry and – and Ron. I – I always wondered – I always thought that they never – I …."

"Shh," he shushed her, "That's all rubbish. Nobody could ever think that about you. You're brilliant."

She gave a watery laugh and leaned into him, wrapping her arms around his neck, "I'll be alright in a few minutes."

"I'll be right here."

"Hey, we just distracted everybody from the – whoa," James stopped and stared at them and the bleeding diadem, Sirius and Peter stopping and looking awkwardly at them behind him.

"Hi," Hermione said as she jerked away from Remus and wiped her eyes, "I'm having an emotional breakdown. Anyone care to join me?"

"Umm…look, I completely understand, and I'd totally let you get back to cuddling Remus – believe me, he's cuddly, we all want to," James shot a grin to Remus before wincing, "But, umm, Alice and Emmeline told us that if we don't bring you down there right now, very bad things would happen to us."

"_Very bad_," Sirius stressed.

Hermione winced and stood, grabbing the bloody diadem and ripping the fang out, dropping both into her bag and nodding, "Right, I'll be down in a second." She pulled her wand out of her hair, washing the dirt off and fixing the tears in her clothing, walking out of the dorm after smiling at the boys.

Remus looked at them pleadingly, still seated on the floor, "I think my heart just got hit in the face."

"Do hearts have faces?" Sirius asked as James shoved him away and sat down in front of Remus.

"Talk," he instructed.

"She was getting ready to stab it when these two guys came out of it, started talking about how she was nothing and why they would ever willingly be friends with her and all this other shit and she just…looked so…I've never seen her like that," he stated, ignoring Sirius and Peter as they inspected the "blood" pool that the diadem had left. "I just…I don't want to see her like that again. Ever."

"Then don't," James shrugged, "Make her happy. Don't ever let her feel like that."

He blinked at her, thinking this over and running his hands through his hair.

* * *

"I know you've got questions and I know you're worried and everything," Hermione stated as she walked into the dorms, looking at the three girls as they opened their mouths to say whatever it was they had to say, "But for right now, can I just break down and cry?"

"Of course," Alice said, grabbing her hand and sitting her down against the bed, letting her lean into her as the tears started to fall again.

"I – I already did this once before," Hermione laughed a little as Lily and Emmeline sat around her, "_Remus_ held me. He held me and I didn't want him to let go."

"Do you want me to go get him?" Alice asked.

"No," Hermione sighed, curling in on herself, "I think I'm fine."

"You _think_," Emmeline echoed.

Hermione gave a laugh, "Even I don't know right now."

* * *

"It's Valentine's Day," Sirius snorted as he, Remus and Hermione got ready to go to Hogsmeade, looking around for jackets or scarves as Hermione walked around with one boot on and looking around for the other, "I hate this holiday."

"You hate Arbor Day too," Remus smirked at him.

"It is a day for _trees!_" he exclaimed, "Like, okay, if you care so much to even celebrate Arbor Day, why don't you do that every single day?"

"So what do you want to do today?" Remus asked after shaking his head at Sirius, turning to Hermione as she hopped into her boot.

She thought for a moment, "Really, all I want to do is egg couples who aren't Lily and James."

The two boys gaped at her before Sirius beamed, bouncing a little, "I'll go get the eggs – meet you in Hogsmeade!" Remus watched as he sprinted out of the portrait and down the hall, grinning at his friend.

* * *

"What an eventful, pleasing day," Sirius sighed in content as he flopped against a bench, closing his eyes as Hermione examined her shoe dully, Remus watching her curiously, "We egged people, we got yelled at. All in all, pretty good." He patted Hermione's knee, "Good idea, Granger, glad we did it."

Remus snorted, shaking his head at Sirius as Hermione rolled her eyes at him. Remus looked at her thoughtfully, which she saw and looked at him curiously for as he stood, his hand outstretched towards her.

"Dance with me," he grinned as Sirius peeked an eye open.

"What?" she blinked, one hand fiddling with a button on her black pea coat.

"Dance with me," he repeated, reaching for her hand and towing her up, already settling a hand on her waist and holding the other as she blushed and tried to pull away.

"Remus, I don't – " she began to protest before he cut her off.

"Please?" he asked, making her wince as she looked up at him.

"I don't really know how," she muttered.

"I'll lead," he smiled as he saw Sirius getting up from the bench out of the corner of his eye and slip away, taking the empty carton with him. "Don't look at your feet," he told her as they began to dance.

"I'm going to step on yours if I don't!"

"I don't care," he grinned, taking his hand from her waist and tilting her chin up, "Alright?"

"Yeah," she murmured, her eyes turned to the first button on his jacket as he replaced the hand.

"I'm going to spin you," he warned with a grin, "Try not to trip."

"Shut it!" she laughed as he pulled the hand from her waist away, using their other hands to guide her.

"Is that Hermione and Remus?" Lily questioned with a small grin as they watched the two figures dance, the girl groaning and complaining as he laughed at her.

"Aww," James cooed with a grin, "I just kind of want to run up and hug both of them."

"Please don't, I'd like to continue our date," Lily smiled at him as he turned his attention away from his friends and back to her.

"If you insist," he smiled, taking a leap of faith and holding her hand as they walked away.

* * *

"Oh my god," Hermione moaned as she fell face first into her mattress, her voice muffled now as Emmeline and Alice hopped their way over to her.

"Problem?" Emmeline asked.

"I want him to ask me out," she muffled, sliding down and kneeling on the floor, her face still in the fabric.

"Who?" Emmeline asked hopefully, Alice frowning at her to remind her that it certainly wasn't the time to be worrying over the bet.

"Remus," Hermione sighed as she pulled her face out and sat against the bed, looking at her hands with a small pout.

"So you admit it then?" Emmeline asked brightly, Alice swatting at her to get her to shut up.

"Openly," Hermione groaned, hitting her head against the mattress, "We danced in the middle of the street in Hogsmeade. And I freaking want that. I want to be completely selfish and want someone to…to whisper in my ear…to hold my hand…to put my hair back behind my ear when it falls in my face, to wrap me in his arms, and tell me that…he loves me." She pulled her knees up to her chest, arms wrapped around them as she buried her face in her sleeves, whimpering as Alice patted her back and as Emmeline silently danced with joy. "I'm pathetic."

"You're female," Alice soothed, "We all think that, and if we don't we've got guys who do that already."

"Unless you're five and think boys are icky," Emmeline smiled as she finally sat down next to the brunette, running her hands through her hair as the two other girls gave short laughs.

* * *

**Umm…so…yeah. *shrugs***

**I want chocolate….**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	17. The Whole Truth

**I posted…like about three of you noticed and reviewed. I should really wait to update fics because when I update them really quickly I feel like people don't notice because it's still like at the top of their favorite fics (doesn't everybody do that, just check on their profile? That's what I do) and when I finally update after a few days/weeks/months/years/centuries, they're just sitting there staring at the screen going "when the hell did this happen? What's going on? Who the fuck is that? What the fuck is this?"**

***shrugs***

* * *

"Hermione…Hermione, wake up…I'm saying this really nicely and everything so you don't accidentally kill me and you don't even notice. Hermione…I'm going to start yelling if you don't wake up soon," Sirius vowed quietly, glaring as she dully opened her eyes and stared at him.

"What?" she whispered.

"Get up," he stood as she groaned and shoved her head underneath the pillow, "Hermione, c'mon, it's important."

She sighed, picking her head up and flinging the blanket aside, clutching the pillow to her chest as she followed him down to the Common Room, where James and Peter were ready to draw on Remus's sleeping face.

"Oy, leave him alone," Hermione frowned as Remus blinked his eyes open and frowned at his friends as they quickly threw away the marker. "Now what is this about?" She flopped onto the couch and nestled into the corner, her knees to the pillow as she looked at them sleepily, "Couldn't it wait until morning?"

"You've told James far more than you've told the rest of us," Sirius accused as he sat down next to her.

"I, for one, was all for waiting until morning," Remus muttered to her, smiling as he closed his eyes, "But they get excited."

"So you want me to tell you everything?" she asked as she sat up a little, biting her lip.

"No," Sirius patted her knee, "Just tell us what you can. We're curious, Hermione, and James hasn't told us everything that you've said."

"I don't know what's safe and what's not," James cried as he curled up on the other side of the couch, Peter diving into the free chair.

"Ohh," she winced, "Umm…well…who wants to go first?"

"Me," Sirius and Peter said quickly.

"I know _nothing_ about me!" Peter huffed.

"Same here!" Sirius glared.

"Peter first, it's more of a shock," she winced and sighed, "Now, Peter, I realize this isn't you. It can't be. I think my arrival knocked your course off."

Peter fidgeted and coughed into his fist, wincing at her as she smiled and nodded before sighing, running her hands through her hair.

"Peter…_that _Peter betrayed Harry's parents to Lord Voldemort and framed Harry's godfather for that, as well as killing a dozen Muggles and himself. He cut off his finger to leave behind a shred of evidence and changed into a rat, living for twelve years as Ron's pet Scabbers until Harry's godfather broke out of Azkaban and hunted him down. He escaped, aided Voldemort in getting his body back, and eventually killed himself via magical metal hand because Harry actually saved his life."

The group was silent as they looked at her, eyebrows raised and mouths open before Peter finally spoke.

"You're _shitting_ me," he gaped, making Sirius snort and begin laughing.

"I suspect it's because of the _favor_ that it won't happen," she stressed.

"What favor?" James questioned as Peter hid his face in his hands.

"Don't tell them," he winced to Hermione, "They'll make fun of me."

"I won't let them," she promised. He thought about it and nodded, burying his face into a pillow. "I set Peter up with a girl from Hufflepuff."

James and Sirius gaped at her before they slowly turned their gazes to Peter and pounced on him, "_Who?_"

"It doesn't matter!" he yelped, waving them off, "We broke up a few months ago! Shut it! You'll wake everybody else up!"

"Mindy?" Remus asked Hermione, where she shook her head and shot a bemused look over at Peter.

"I set him up with Roxanne," she smirked as Peter blushed, "I don't know who Mindy is."

He coughed, "I asked her out a week ago. Remus asked what I was doing at Hogsmeade while you, him and Sirius egged people and I told him about her."

Hermione beamed, "See? You're not going to end up that foul man."

"Thank God," he settled into the chair, waving Sirius and James away, "Tell Sirius his."

Sirius gaped at Hermione before bouncing back to his seat, James following as Remus chuckled at his friends.

She fidgeted, "Umm…Sirius, you were Harry's godfather."

Sirius gaped at her, his shoulders slumping before he grabbed her pillow and threw it at Peter, "You arse! You sent me to Azkaban!"

"No I didn't!" he argued as Hermione shivered, missing the warmth she'd stored into that pillow as Remus pulled a blanket off from the chair he was sitting in and offered it to her. She took it with a smile and threw it over her head, wrapping it around her body as she pulled her toes under it.

"You hid out until our fifth year in Grimmauld place, up until you went to the Department of Mysteries to save me, Harry and Ron and our friends from Death Eaters, as Harry had been tricked into thinking you'd been hurt there by Voldemort. Bellatrix made you fall into the Veil. You…you didn't come back out," she continued as she bit her lip as he stopped hitting Peter with a pillow and stared at her, nodding slowly before he shrugged and walked back to the couch.

"Poor sod," he sighed, running a hand through his hair before pausing and frowning at her, "Please tell me I wasn't bald."

She laughed, leaning against him as he grinned, "You had your hair, I can say that much."

"Was I still hot?" he asked as James snorted with Remus rolling his eyes.

"Umm…in some ways, you could've been," she winced and pulled back as he sighed.

"Alright, Remus's turn," James grinned as he tilted his head back over the arm of the chair, closing his eyes again.

"Remus was the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor in third year, after that he – "

"Ahem," he said as he opened his eyes, frowning at her upside down, "That isn't me, just as that wasn't Peter and that wasn't Sirius."

She smiled at him and slipped the blanket off of her head, reaching out to tug on a strand of his hair as he grinned at her, "Fine, make things more difficult to explain for me." She stuck her tongue out at him when he began to chuckle, sighing as she turned back to the three others, "Professor Lupin – is that better?"

"Yes," he grinned, reaching out and taking her hand as she began to pull it away, examining the lines on her palm.

She sighed and rolled her eyes, trying to act as if this was nothing, although the butterflies in her stomach wouldn't let her think that, "Professor Lupin was in the Order, fighting Death Eaters until he…err – died in the Final Battle."

"Poor him," Remus sighed dully, still tracing her hand and trying to ignore the smirking boys.

"And Jamerson?" Sirius prompted as James gave him a quick kick in the leg and a glare.

"James…" she faltered, "Was Harry's dad. He protected him and Harry's mother when Voldemort came to kill Harry because of a stupid prophecy as much as he could. Harry was an orphan and lived with his aunt and uncle. They put him in a cupboard under the stairs for years," she pulled her hand away from Remus and stood, the frown on her face as she walked around the back of the couch, "They treated him like dirt, treated their son like he was a bloody prince, I probably could've picked Harry up when we were eleven. And Harry – Harry found the philosopher's stone when we were eleven, defeated the basilisk at twelve, didn't die by a murderer's hand at thirteen, fought with a dragon and escaped Voldemort at fourteen, escaped Voldemort again at fifteen, watched our mentor die at sixteen, hunted Horcruxes and defeated Voldemort at seventeen, and now I don't know if he's going to make it or not because some stupid bloody woman decided to screw everything up and kill my parents before I was born and leave me here without…." She stopped, as Remus had stood in front of her before he picked her up and made her squeak, walking back over to the couch and sitting down in the middle with the four boys around her.

"If you say that you haven't got family here, I'll be extremely offended," James told her with a grin, "Hermione, we killed a _basilisk_ with you. You made a potion for Moony. You set me up with the girl of my dreams. You set Peter up with a girl and apparently changed fate! I don't know what you did for Sirius, but who cares! Hermione, you've done so much for us and we can't even _begin_ to thank you!"

"Yeah, Kitten, we're close," Sirius agreed before reaching forward and pecking her on the cheek, James doing the same on the other side as she wrinkled her nose and pulled back, where Remus placed a peck on the top of her head to make her blush, the other three watching in amusement.

Lily blinked, biting her lip before smiling and deciding that this was definitely a secret to keep to herself, going quietly back up the stairs and realizing that none of it really mattered as she slipped back into bed.

Unless she wasn't Harry's mother. Only then did it matter.

* * *

**No, they don't know Lily knows. No, they won't find out any time soon. No, Lily won't let them know. No, she doesn't know she marries James. Only James and Hermione know that. No, Peter's not bad here. But I still don't like him. I figure he'll just go out with Mindy and slowly pull a bit away from the Marauders and just live out life with her. No, this is not a fluffy chapter, unless you count those bits I added in. No, they won't know about Tonks. Because that'd just be awkward and I don't want Remus feeling weird. Poor baby.**

**I know what I'm doing here. Have faith, don't judge. Wait it out patiently and you'll find out where I'm going with this nonsense.**

**(I only say this because in the past, people have questioned both my story and me when I went a little off. I think I've actually lost people when I do shit like this. *shrugs* Don't like it, don't read it, in my opinion.)**

**(And how many of you forgot about that woman? Mwuehehehe.)**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	18. The Same Question

**Hello-lo-lo-lo! Is anybody there-ere-ere-ere? Are you still with me-me-me-me? Did I not scare you off-off-off-off?**

**Haha, okay, enough of me being silly. Let's get on with it! **[Although I am really scared that I scared a lot of people away with the last chapter for some reason. :( Reassure me?]

**This is set in early March, FYI.**

* * *

"Morning," Hermione chirped happily, sliding into her seat next to Remus and settling her bag down, turning to him and freezing as she caught him looking at her intently, "Err…Remus?"

He blinked, sitting up straighter and blushing a bit, "Oh, right, morning."

"Are you alright?" she asked as she pulled her Potions book out of her bag, setting it up on the table.

"Umm…actually, I've got a few questions to ask you," he winced, "They'll seem a bit weird. Is that okay?"

"Of course," she shrugged, still smiling.

"You're sure that you're going to stay with us, like this, like – like you being in our year and everything, right?" he asked, looking away from her and at his parchment.

"Yes," she sighed, shrugging it off, "You're stuck with me forever and ever, no way around it."

"Oh, well then…" he cleared his throat, wincing as he looked at her through his hair, pulling his hand through it as he finally lifted his head, "Do you, err…do you want to go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend? Like a…date?"

She blinked at him before finally smiling, making him smile in response and feel a little hopeful, "Yes, I'd love to."

"Brilliant," he grinned back before jumping with her as Sirius ran into the classroom, Lily and James hot on his heels with books as weapons as he dived underneath his table, startling Emmeline from her sleep.

Hermione and Remus winced simultaneously at each other as he leaned closer to whisper to her.

"Let's not let them know until _after_," he grinned.

"Agreed," she smiled back.

* * *

"You are an arsehat, Lily Evans, and I won't stand for this injustice!" Emmeline glared as Lily smirked at her from the couch, looking victorious as Alice hid behind the couch. James was wincing as Sirius looked blankly at everybody, having absolutely no clue what was going on. Hermione and Remus walked into the Common Room, freezing as they stared at everybody, Emmeline whirling around and glaring at them as she hid behind him a little. "And what are you two doing here so late, hmm?"

"We were – ahh," Hermione winced, hiding behind Remus and looking up at him curiously, wondering if they should tell them.

"We were at Hogsmeade, on our date," he shrugged, smiling a little as their friends gaped, Lily standing from the couch and standing beside Emmeline.

"_What?_" they asked together, a rather harsh tone to Lily's voice and a rather gleeful one to Emmeline's.

"Umm, it's where two people who rather fancy each other go on an outing together," Hermione answered, grinning at them as Remus chuckled at her, "They're very common, I thought you've been on a few."

"HA!" Emmeline bounced, grinning at Lily as the redhead gaped at them, "I _win!_ I don't have to go out with Black!"

"Wait, what?" Sirius blinked as Hermione frowned and put her hands on her hips, glaring at her three friends.

"Excuse you, what are you on about?" she asked.

"Umm…" Alice bit her lip, "We all kind of rather bet that you and Remus would or wouldn't be together by today. If Emmeline lost, she'd have to go out with Sirius. If Lily lost, she'd…" She blinked with the other two girls, "If Lily lost, she'd have to go out with James, but she already is so…."

"Dammit!" Emmeline growled as Lily smirked, "There is no real victory here!"

"I can't believe you three!" Hermione gaped, "Messing about in my love life – how long has this been going on?"

As they winced and grimaced at each other, Alice hid her eyes and mumbled the answer.

"I barely even knew you then!" she growled, "I thought you were far more mature than making bets about people you don't know!"

"But we knew Remus!" Emmeline exclaimed before slapping her hands over her mouth, eyes wide as Lily jabbed her in the ribs with a glare.

"Hermione, relax," Remus sighed, placing his hands on her shoulders and making her look up at him as he smiled down at her, "They were stupid. They're sorry because they know it upsets you. You'll forgive them soon enough and you know it."

She sighed and pouted at him, "I had this whole speech planned and you ruined it. Prat."

He grinned and pecked her on the head, "I'm very sorry to deprive you of that then."

She pulled away and smiled at him, "See you later?"

"Yeah, see you," he smiled back as she walked past the other girls and up the staircase.

"I told you it was a bad idea," James told them as Emmeline, Lily and Alice craned their necks to watch her go, "You really shouldn't have – "

"Mmyeah, bye," Lily and Emmeline chorused, scrambling to run up after her, making her give a little scream and slam the door, although it was quickly opened again by the time Alice made it up there too.

"_Girls_," James sighed, throwing his hands up in the air as Sirius pounced on Moony, bouncing.

"Did you kiss her, did you kiss her, did you kiss her?" he chanted as Remus rolled his eyes and made his way to the couch, Sirius bouncing along behind him.

"I did, and you just saw it," he arched an eyebrow as Sirius's face fell and he gaped at him, "What?"

"That wasn't a _kiss_!" he snorted, "That was a peck, that was nothing! Tell him, James."

"Umm," James winced, "He's right. That, technically speaking, is a kiss though, just not what Sirius was asking."

"It was our first date," Remus frowned at his friends, sinking into the couch as Sirius began to look at him sympathetically, "I happened to like our date, so shut it."

"What'd you do on your date, anyway?" James asked, smiling as he waved Sirius off.

"Walked around, stopped at Honeyduke's, walked around Hogsmeade eating candy and talking," he shrugged, smiling, "Ignoring you lot as long as we could until we caved and went to the Three Broomsticks. Came here."

"That sounds boring," Sirius commented as he rested his chin on the back of the couch, in between him and James, "You could've kissed her. Made it more exciting."

"I liked it!" Remus said once again, huffing, "I don't want to scare her off either. I happen to like her."

"Aww," James and Sirius cooed, leaning against their friend as he sighed and rolled his eyes at them.

* * *

"Did he kiss you, did he kiss you, did he kiss you?" Alice asked as she bounced around Hermione with a giant grin on her face.

Hermione arched an eyebrow, watching as she did so and wondered whether to cave or act as if she was still mad at them. She realized that they would still ask these questions even if Nearly Headless Nick floated around in there with a bra on his head while doing the tango with a pink purple polka-dotted penguin. She smiled as she sat down on her bed and picked her feet up.

"No, not like that, but I _loved_ our date," she grinned as Alice beamed and pounced onto the mattress with her, "He's brilliant."

"Aww," Emmeline cooed.

Hermione sat up straighter and glared at her, "I'm still mad at you!"

She winced at Lily, who blushed as well and rubbed the back of her neck.

"Hermione, we're really sorry," Lily winced, "It was stupid of us."

"Yes, yes it was," she frowned before grinning, "Fine, I do forgive you."

"So your boyfriend was right then?" Emmeline teased until she saw Hermione's eyebrows furrow and she tilted her head, "What?"

"Is that what we are now?"

"Generally speaking, yes, that's usually what happens," Lily blinked, "Why?"

She shrugged, blinking, "I've just…never really had that before. The whole 'dating' thing. It's weird."

"Good weird or bad weird?" Alice asked.

She bit her lip, smiling, "Good weird."

"Good," Alice smiled, reaching over and hugging Hermione, "I'm happy that you're happy, Hermione."

"You deserve to be happy," Lily told her, making Hermione blink at her before she shrugged it off and smiled.

"Thanks."

"So when're you two going to snog?" Emmeline asked, making her snort and nearly topple off the bed, the four girls laughing at her.

* * *

**Was this chapter good?**

**No, it was rubbish.**

**Am I tired?**

**God yes.**

**Will I go to sleep?**

**That's iffy.**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	19. The Tree

**When I hover over the Word icon, my list of stories that I'm currently working on pops up. At the very front of the list is this story, which it shouldn't be as I bring up new documents and they should be first. But instead it's this.**

**My computer wants me to work on this story.**

**So I must do so. Please don't get a virus. *pets screen* I love you far too much for you to leave me.**

**Mid-March maybe? Dunno.**

* * *

"Why won't you kiss her yet?" Sirius asked with a frown as he followed along behind his werewolf friend through the woods, the duo making their way back to the Shrieking Shack. James had been in the Hospital Wing for a day or two now because he'd fallen off his broom during Quidditch practice and nearly broke his neck. Peter was helping Hermione research through some papers to find more ways to track down Horcruxes – while also studying for their N.E.W.T.s and doing homework. Many paper cuts and tired eyes from those two, but that's not the point. Sirius had been itching to ask Remus this in private ever since his and Hermione's first date. He'd given short answers or frowns when asked with anybody else within hearing distance, but Sirius knew there was something under the surface that needed to be shown.

Remus sighed, dragging his hands over his face and opening his mouth to give a retort when Sirius continued.

"And don't give me any of the usual crap either," he could hear the frown in his voice, "What's really wrong?"

Remus stopped and turned to him, looking at his friend as he crossed his arms over his chest, sighing and running his hands through his hair, "I just…it's stupid."

"It's stupid because it's keeping both you _and_ Hermione from being happy," Sirius glared, "Now what is it?"

"I just…she's…I'm a _werewolf_, Sirius."

He slapped a hand to his face and widened his eyes, gaping, "Why Moony, I had _no_ idea!" At his frown, he dropped the look and arched an eyebrow, "And…?"

"_And_ she's Hermione."

Sirius was silent for a moment, waiting for him to elaborate more.

"I'm this great big furry…_thing_ once a month," he kicked a rock as he glared at the ground, "I just…I…."

Sirius blinked at him, uncrossing his arms, "You think you don't deserve Hermione?"

He looked dejectedly at him, "I told you it was stupid. I know it's stupid. I said that before I told you this whole _rant_."

"Mate, if she didn't want you, she wouldn't have agreed to go out with you," he told him, "Now you're both mature young adults who have been going out for – pfft, shit, what is it – three weeks, who are _begging_ to be snogged by their significant other, but they don't see it."

"I haven't been beggi – she what?" he cut himself off mid-sentence and blinked at him.

Sirius looked at him in amusement as he passed, "I thought you knew everything?"

Remus only rolled his eyes at him and followed as Sirius began to lead the way this time.

* * *

"You sure you're alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, why?"

"Your head's in my lap," Hermione smiled down at him, running her hands through his hair as he began to grin, "You never do this. I'm a little worried."

"You should be," he smirked as he opened his eyes, "Because this is going to be a regular thing now."

She hummed at that, still running her fingers through his hair as she leaned against the tree trunk, "I think that'll be alright."

He hummed back, his eyes closing again as she grinned and started running her finger up and down his nose, making him scrunch it up and open his eyes again to try and glare at her as he grinned.

"Oh, were you trying to sleep?" she smiled down at him as he sat up, one arm on the other side of her legs as he leaned in and narrowed his eyes. "Should I be sorry then? Because I'm not."

He tilted his head and arched an eyebrow at her, smirking, "I doubt it."

"Oh? Why is that?"

He leaned in closer, their noses brushing as her eyes widened at him, "Because it's leading to this."

"Am I going to like this?" she murmured as she shut her eyes, "Because I think I am."

He smiled as he shut his, "I think I am too."

"Hey, look, there they are!" James pointed out, taking in a deep breath to yell at them before Sirius's eyes widened and he slapped his hands over his best friend's mouth.

"Don't you dare ruin this for either of them," he glared, making James blink until he realized what was going on.

"_Oh_," he muffled against Sirius's hand as Remus leaned towards Hermione and finally kissed her.

"It's so cute," Sirius grinned, releasing James's face and leaning against him.

"You think they'd be mad if they knew we were watching them make out?" James winced at him.

"They aren't snogging," Sirius snorted, rolling his eyes, "But, yeah, they'd be mad. Let's go – I don't think they'd be too interested in toadstools anyway."

* * *

**I – I don't write too much about kissing. I mean, like, it's just really weird for me to even attempt it. Because I don't know how to go about these things. Plus it's just really awkward for me. So you get Sirius and James instead of a very detailed kiss about two fictional characters. And fluff! Yay fluff!**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	20. The Sleepover

**I just spent thirty minutes on my back porch tossing an apple back and forth staring at the stars. It was a peaceful time.**

* * *

Hermione yawned, slumping against Remus as he chuckled at her, lifting his arm so she could curl up on the couch and lay her head against his leg.

"What do your friends have against sleeping?" she questioned as she shut her eyes.

He arched an eyebrow, "Why are they just my friends all of a sudden?"

"Because this is the second time they've woken me up in the middle of the night, that's why," she muttered, not even looking up as James finally appeared in the Common Room.

"Alright, now – Hermione, wake up," he began, frowning at the girl as Lily chuckled at her.

"No," she whined, reaching up above her and pulling the blanket down on top of her, curling up underneath it, "Sleepy!"

"I, for one, am all for waiting until a decent hour to share major announcements," Remus smiled, running his hands through Hermione's hair, "But, like I said, they get excited."

She hummed, already beginning to slip away as James sighed and shook his head.

"My mum is…my mum, so she wants to meet you," James winced to Lily, "And she wants to do so at or around Easter."

Lily absorbed this before nodding, "Alright, sounds…manageable."

James beamed at her before turning to Remus and Hermione and wincing, "And, uhh, my mum talked to your mum and now we're having a big Meet-the-Girlfriends dinner."

"I'm sorry – _what?_" Hermione sat up, gaping at James as Sirius tried to contain his grin, "_What?_"

"And we know – well, _she_ knows – that your parents aren't around, so she's invited you to stay with us," James winced, "Sirius and I will be there, if that helps."

"Do you understand how _awkward_ that will be, James?" she asked, sitting up completely and arching an eyebrow at him, "Do you fully comprehend that?"

"Well, yeah, but we can't exactly tell Mum why," he said, "And even if we did, I doubt we'd change her mind much. It's my mum."

"I barely know your mum!"

"Explains why you thought you could change her mind then," Sirius chuckled, "Look, worst case scenario is that everything is awkward. Then we come back to school, graduate, see them a few times after that as we leave the nests, and everything's peachy."

"It is not _peachy!_" Hermione huffed as Lily grinned at her, "I don't make great first impressions!"

"Well, technically, this is second impressions," Remus noted, smiling at her, "Remember? Christmas?"

"Oh my Merlin – they think that's my jumper now," she groaned, hiding her face in her hands, "They think I'm weird."

"Did you _see_ my mother's socks?" he chuckled, pulling her hands back, "Hermione, trust me, my mother and James's mum will adore you and yell at us for not bringing you over sooner."

"It's what happened to me," Sirius smirked as James rolled his eyes.

"Besides, you've got me too, and that'll be just as awkward," Lily smiled, "'Oh, yes, hullo, Missus Potter, I hated your son for six years, love your hair!'"

Hermione snorted, grinning at her, "Yeah, yours is worse."

"Thank you for reassuring me," Lily laughed, standing and making her way to the stairs, "And now I am off to bed!"

Hermione sighed as James grinned apologetically at her before quickly making his way up the stairs, Sirius snorting and shrugging at the two before following him up.

"Yup, definitely your friends," she muttered, laying her head back on his leg as he chuckled down at her.

"Hermione, everything'll be fine, I promise," he smiled, brushing hair out of her face as she pouted.

"No it won't, you don't know how things work around me," she huffed as he chuckled again and leaned to peck her head.

"Yes it will, you don't know how things work around us," he smirked as she smiled and closed her eyes.

She sighed once more, frowning a little now with her eyes still closed, "I want to go to sleep."

"So sleep," he shrugged.

"I can't, now I'm awake," she grinned as he laughed, leaning over to peck her on the tip of her nose.

"I could read my History of Magic report to you, make you fall asleep," he grinned as she laughed too, opening her eyes and sitting up.

"No, but thank you," she smiled before reaching forward to peck his lips, "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Hermione," he smiled back as she stood and headed up the staircase. Once he heard the door shut, he grinned and slid down the length of the couch, resting his head against the pillow as he stared up at the ceiling and thought, unaware that Hermione was lying face down in her pillow as she did the same.

* * *

"Mum, don't freak out!" James yelped as his mother opened her mouth, a happy grin already stretched across her face as Hermione blushed and tugged her hair to hide her face, "Mum, this is Hermione." He reached past Sirius, who was laughing as quietly as he could, and grabbed her hand, towing her up to his mother and smiling as she looked bashfully at her feet, "Hermione is very shy and thinks – for some unknown reason – that you won't like her."

"Darling, that's nonsense," she said, reaching forward and gently picking her face up and smiling brightly, "I'm Dorea, and you have no idea how happy I am to meet you."

"Thank you, it's nice to meet you as well," she smiled, shaking her hand, "By the way, that wasn't my sweater on Christmas. It was one of the sixth year girls'."

She laughed, "I guessed. How is that, anyway?"

"Ahh," she glanced back at Sirius and James, who glanced between each other, "It's…handled."

She sighed, rolling her eyes, "Tcht. School."

Hermione laughed, nodding as she was led away.

* * *

"Hermione!" Sirius screamed happily, making her scream and attempt to step away to turn and glare at him, only he picked her up and slung her over his shoulder.

"Sirius!" she yelled back, punching him lightly in the back, "What are you doing?"

"Showing you to your room, duh," he snorted, going up some stairs as she glared at James, who was following with a grin.

"I can _walk_," she huffed as Dorea blinked at them before smiling and shaking her head as she continued her way down.

"You might trip," James offered.

"We're only thinking about your safety, Kitten," Sirius said as he patted her leg.

"I want to hurt you," she said simply as he opened up a door and set her down, glaring at him and crossing her arms over her chest as they grinned down at her.

"We love you too," James chuckled before pecking her forehead, Sirius pecking her cheek.

She sighed and rolled her eyes, smiling at the two, "Thank you and goodnight."

"Night, Kitten!" Sirius beamed as they walked to their own rooms and she shut the door.

* * *

**Ummm…yeah. Not a whole lot to say here then.**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	21. The Evil Frog

**Last chapter wasn't so great. But I just want to make you guys think for a second. Remember all that's happened in twenty chapters, then go back to the first chapter and think "Haaha, you're gonna date in like, seventeen more chapters, haha!" That's what I did today.**

**PS – hey, umm, you know who you are – why were you in the hospital? Are you okay? Is everything going to be alright? You don't tell me stuff like that and then not even say anything about why you were there, I start worrying about you when that happens.**

* * *

Somebody was humming, and there was something trailing along down the side of her nose. She wrinkled her nose and groaned a little, burying her face into the pillow a bit, hoping that whatever the disturbance was would go away.

"Hermione," somebody said softly, "Wake up."

"Go 'way, Lily," she muttered, putting the pillow on top of her head. She thought for a few moments before pulling back out and blinking at the smiling redhead before they gave quiet screams and hugged each other.

"What are you doing here?" she asked happily as Lily scooted into the empty space.

"Well, Tuney was getting on my last ever-loving nerve, so I begged and pleaded with Mum to let me come here earlier than expected and begged and pleaded with James to come and get me, so here I am at four in the morning," at Hermione's curious look, she smirked, "He got excited."

"How long are you staying?" she asked.

"Umm, up until after Easter – that's when Petunia leaves," she shrugged before beaming again, "I missed you for the three days I didn't see you."

She beamed back, "I missed you too."

* * *

"Sirius, would you do me a favor and go wake the girls up?" Dorea asked as she checked back on the pancakes.

Sirius stared at her wide-eyed before finally shaking his head, his mouth full of pumpkin juice.

"And why not?" she asked with a frown, hands on her hips as James chuckled.

"He's scared of them, Mum," he laughed as Sirius shot him a glare.

"Alright, then you go wake them up, James," she shrugged.

"Umm…" James faltered, wincing at the smirking Sirius.

"Oh for Merlin's sake, boys, just go," she glared, making them wince at each other before they slumped up the stairs.

"Morning!" Charlus said happily as he stepped into the kitchen, pecking his wife on the cheek, "Where are the kids?"

"The boys are waking up Lily and Hermione," she answered.

He stopped on his way to the table, turning back around and staring at her with wide eyes, "_No._"

"What?" she blinked back.

"Are you _trying_ to kill them?" he asked incredulously.

"Charlus, those girls are angels," she huffed.

"To you and me, perhaps, but when it comes to James and Sirius…" he trailed off with a grimace before sighing, walking over to the table, "Best start planning the funerals now."

She rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to argue with that when she heard two screams and the boys cursing as the group tromped down the stairs. James and Sirius rocketed past his parents, flinging open the back door as Lily easily chased after them, Hermione sliding a little in her socks before going out as well. Charlus was trying to hide his grin behind his paper as Dorea gaped at them when the four seemed to yell out "Cold!" simultaneously, James and Sirius running back in and shutting the door and locking it. Dorea shook her head slowly at them, going back to making breakfast as they heard Lily huff at them until a loud crack sent the boys yelling and pressing themselves into the corner as Hermione rolled her eyes and let Lily in.

"Morning," Charlus said coolly, taking a sip from his coffee.

"Good morning," Hermione winced and bit her lip, Lily coughing awkwardly as she wrung out her hair.

"James, Sirius, did you pour water on the girls?" Charlus asked without looking.

"Uhh," they chorused.

"Did you even _attempt_ waking them up nicely?"

"Uhh," they repeated, wincing at each other.

"I'll go get dressed," Hermione winced, grinning sheepishly at them before heading back upstairs as Lily glared at James and rolled her eyes.

"No idea why I'm dating you," she muttered before turning to Dorea and smiling, "Anything you need help with, Missus Potter?"

"Uhhmm," she pursed her lips and looked around before shaking her head, "No, nothing comes to mind, but thank you for asking, Sweetie."

"Sirius Black! Why is there a _frog_ in my bag?" Hermione called from upstairs, making the teenager blink.

"Uhh, Kitten, frogs are gross!" Sirius called up, "I don't go near them!"

"James?" she asked.

"Umm, no," he said warily, scrunching his eyebrows as Charlus began to stand and slowly make his way to the staircase, wand out as Lily followed worriedly.

"…Lily?" she asked, sounding a little scared.

"Run!" Lily ordered, having her scream and dash down the stairs as Charlus ran up them, skidding into Lily and grabbing her to tow her back into the kitchen as there were shouts and bangs heard upstairs. Dorea grabbed her wand and the frying pan, handing the latter to Hermione as she blinked at her.

"What are you doing in my house?" Charlus asked as he towed the man down the stairs, holding him by the back of his shirt. He was skinny, zits on his pale face as he tried to wrestle out of his hold.

"Oh my god," Hermione whimpered into Lily's shoulder, "I changed shirts before I noticed the frog!"

"Merlin's shorts, you pervert!" Sirius growled, reaching for his wand as the man continued to twist and turn.

"I didn't see anything – don't kill me because of the Mudblood!" he yelled angrily, except Dorea pointed her wand directly in his face.

"Don't you _dare_ call my girls that foul name!" she glared as he stilled and stared at her with wide-eyes, Hermione, Lily and James doing the same behind her as Sirius smirked at her.

"Who're you?" Charlus asked.

The man stayed silent until Hermione was upon him, wielding the frying pan.

"Who _are you?_" she demanded.

"Kenneth Picknesse!" he yelped.

"Why were you in my bag?" she asked. When he didn't answer, she prodded the frying pan towards his nose and glared harder, "I _will_ use this."

"I was sent by Bellatrix Lestrange and another woman," he finally answered.

James, Sirius and Hermione's eyes widened and they blinked at one another.

"Who was the other woman?" Charlus asked.

"I – I didn't get her name," he fidgeted, "Kinda tall, blonde, around her thirties, really creepy, told me to 'kill the frizzy-haired Mudblood so she can see Mummy and Daddy.'"

Hermione paled and dropped the frying pan onto Kenneth's foot, making him howl in pain as she slapped her hands over her mouth.

Sirius stepped forward and grabbed her shoulder, steering her away from everybody as Charlus sent a Patronus for Aurors. He led her into the library, shutting the door and casting a few charms on it before he turned to her as she shakily sat down on the couch.

"Hermione?" he asked after a few moments.

"She won't stop," she sighed, letting her head fall against the back of the couch, "She won't stop until I'm gone."

"What do you want to do?" he asked after a few more moments.

She pursed her lips, running her hands over her face as she sighed, "My best bet is to play dead once school is over. I still need Dumbledore's cooperation to get a few more Horcruxes, after that we'll have to think of something and I'll have to go into hiding."

"Who should know?" he asked.

"You, Peter, Lily, the Potters, the Lupins, Dumbledore, Emmeline and Alice," she sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, "Things are going to get very difficult very quickly."

"You've got us to help," Sirius said proudly, making her look up and smile.

"Yeah," she chuckled before groaning, "I hate frogs now."

* * *

"Mum," Remus winced as he watched his girlfriend being hugged enthusiastically by his mother, "This is kind of awkward. For everyone. Hermione especially."

"Oh, right, sorry!" Lyn smiled as she pulled back from Hermione, beaming at her as she blushed back. "Oh my gosh, you're so cute!"

"Mum," Remus repeated, taking Hermione away from her as his father did the same with his wife.

"She's just very glad to meet you," John said, smiling at Hermione as Lyn nodded enthusiastically, "And I am too, just…not as glad, I think."

"Thank you," Hermione smiled back, "It's nice to meet you too."

"Ugh, you're so boring, Kitten," Sirius pouted on the staircase with Lily and James, "Think up a snappy response."

"Shut it, Sirius," Hermione and Remus chorused, frowning at him.

"I mean, you're just all prim and proper – at least relax, you're dating their son for Merlin's sake," Sirius continued before blinking and looking dully at Lily, "Same to you, Evans."

"I'll kick you down this staircase," Lily glared at him to make him grin.

"Do it," Hermione, James and Remus frowned at him as he stuck his tongue out at them.

"One word, Kitten," Sirius smirked, "_Ribbit_."

"That's not funny!" Hermione told him as Lily smacked him upside the head, James wincing and hiding behind the railing a little as Remus looked at his friends curiously.

"What?" he blinked.

Hermione gaped at him before glaring further at Sirius, who winced and hid with James as Lily sighed.

"We had a little…altercation the other day," Lily tried to grin, "No biggie, it's covered."

"Why do I get the feeling you aren't telling me everything?" Remus asked dully as the four exchanged glances.

"It's nothing, honestly," Hermione grinned at him.

John blinked at them, "Were _you_ the ones who got the frog that tried to kill somebody? I heard about that at work, but never got a name."

"Hermione?" Remus asked, narrowing his eyes at her as she bit her lip and gripped part of her hair.

"Umm…it's handled?" she tried.

"You were nearly killed by a frog?" he blinked.

"No…" she winced before perking up, "Hey, uhh, I'm going to go see if Missus Potter needs any help, okay bye." She quickly dashed off to the kitchen as Remus and his parents turned to the group on the stairs, who glanced between each other before grinning sheepishly at him.

* * *

Hermione frowned down at the apple in her hands, unaware that somebody was there until he leaned against the back of the swing, making it move. She blinked and looked up at Remus, who grinned at her.

"Am I that boring that you had to run out here?" he asked, making her wince and shake her head.

"No, I just…" she looked at the apple as he sat down, "Thinking."

"Hmm," he hummed, swinging them in silence for a few moments before he reached over and slid her closer to him, pulling her legs over his lap and looking at her curiously, "Why didn't you tell me about the frog guy?"

"I don't want you to worry too much."

"Who said I'd – ?" he cut himself off as she looked at him disbelievingly, grinning sheepishly at her. "Fine, yes, I'd worry, but can you _blame_ me?"

"Not _everyone_ wants to kill me," she pouted, "Just a decent amount of them do."

"Not what I was going to say, but that's…something," he smiled, "Hermione, you're my girlfriend. If someone wants to hurt you, I'm going to worry about it."

She huffed and laid her head on his shoulder, rolling her eyes, "Fine."

He chuckled and ran his hands through her hair, "What's with the apple?"

She snorted and shrugged, "I dunno, I found it."

He laughed and nuzzled her neck, hugging her close, "You're so weird."

She smiled at him and pecked his lips, "You are too."

"So what are you going to do? With the other Horcruxes?"

She sighed and thumped her head on his shoulder again, "Well, one's in Bellatrix's vault, I remember that one, and the others are just in a big bag labeled 'nope.'"

"We'll get them, don't worry," he reassured her.

"Why can't everybody just get along with everyone else?" she pouted at him.

"Because people think they're right and everyone else is wrong, regardless of whether they are or not."

"That was a quick answer," she muttered as she hugged him again.

He shrugged, taking the apple from her and taking a bite out of it, "I've thought about it once."

She hummed before blinking at him as he spit the apple out, "What?"

"That just sucked all the spit out of my mouth," he threw the rest of the apple away, grimacing at her as she laughed.

* * *

**I think I need sleep….**

**Love,**

**Ava**


	22. The Toad Impersonation

**Umm, quite a few people were all "OH IT WAS A POISON APPLE WASN'T IT" **

**Uhh**

**No…**

**I mean, I didn't plan for it to be. I didn't mean to focus so much on the apple last chapter. I'm sorry. I mean, I know a lot of people don't like sour apples and think they suck the spit out of their mouth. So…the apple isn't evil. It doesn't want to kill anybody. It was just an apple. **

* * *

"Your hair is mad."

"Mad as in angry, or mad as in crazy?" she asked, setting her chin against the library table with a sigh as he stood a little and reached over to try to sort through it.

"Mad as in crazy," he said with a grin, making her give a soft groan and slump her face onto the table. "Do you always get so worked up over tests?"

"It used to be worse, or so they say," Hermione said as she sat up and began the difficult process of tying her hair up before giving up halfway through, watching dully as the rubber band broke and sailed onto the table. "Drove my friends insane when I was younger. I think the only one who tolerated me and my quirks was Luna – and that's saying something, as she was dubbed 'Looney' by the whole school."

"Well that's…hard to come up with a comment to," he grinned as she smiled wearily at him. "Is it weird being here sometimes?"

"At the beginning, yeah, but then – " she cut herself off as she watched Scarlett, Olivia and Alexis tiptoeing their way silently through the library, carrying suspicious looking bags. She glanced at Remus, who appeared at as much as a loss as she did.

"What are you doing?" she hissed to them when they were close enough to their table.

"I am seeking revenge," Alexis hissed back, Scarlett nodding along behind her seriously while Olivia rolled her eyes. "A certain jerkface put pudding in my bra this morning."

"Who?" Remus arched an eyebrow.

"Elliot Wood – Avery's younger brother?" Olivia snorted and rolled her eyes once more, "He's a prat, but I don't see why we have to dump pudding on him while he's studying."

"I don't see why he had to put pudding _in my bra_ while I was _sleeping!_" Alexis snapped as Hermione turned to her boyfriend and looked at a loss, while he was trying not to laugh aloud.

"She's very protective of her bras," Scarlett murmured sagely.

Hermione shook her head and grinned at them before finally shrugging, "Have fun, don't get caught?"

"Thanks – any pointers, Remus?" Alexis asked brightly.

"Wards – lots of wards," he advised, "Pince will have your head if you forget."

"Brilliant, thanks!" she beamed before the three walked off.

"Funny thing is, I'm half certain she either marries Elliot or Avery," Hermione bit the end of her quill, "How old is he again?"

"_What_?" Remus blinked at her.

"Four years – not that much," she hummed, "Oliver said something about his mum glaring at pudding for no reason, so there's that, but I don't know if Elliot or Avery is his dad."

"You are completely losing me," he admitted, leaning forward and stretching his arms across the table towards her.

"Sorry, talking to myself," she smiled, patting his hand.

He grinned up at her as she went back to her books, but left her hand on his and ran her thumb over the skin. He smiled at her, as she probably didn't know she was even doing this, and brought the other arm back to set his chin on. He didn't really _need_ to tell her that he'd been finished with studying for nearly an hour. It's not like it meant anything.

* * *

"I forget what a bezoar does," Alice admitted before Remus flipped to a page in a book and held it out for her, upside down like she was. "Oh. Thanks."

"I am so done!" Hermione announced angrily to the Common Room, making Alice and Remus jump and stare at her with wide eyes. "Ugh, I should just go out like Fred and George – I hardly need my N.E.W.T.s, especially not if I have to put up with that!"

"Hermione," Alice began slowly, "What are you talking about?"

She pursed her lips before wrinkling her nose and saying, "Ugh! I feel ill – she makes me ill."

"Who?" Remus asked as she sat down next to him.

"That horrid Ministry worker, _Umbridge_," she growled, "She was 'checking over' Hogwarts and she started chiding me for 'letting my hair get so messy – it's simply not lady like.'" Hermione sighed and leaned into him, pouting now. "I hate her."

"Just because of your hair?" Alice blinked.

"Err, no, I've met her before," she said, Remus smiling sympathetically at her. "Horrid woman, horrid person, shouldn't even be classified as a human being," she muttered under her breath.

"EVERYBODY RUN!" Sirius yelled as he slid into the Common Room, Emmeline right behind him, "THERE'S A DRAGON LOOSE IN HOGWARTS!"

"Oh, Sirius, stop overreacting," Emmeline said with a frown.

"No, she's a toad!" Hermione sat up, making Sirius nod his head fervently as Emmeline sighed and plopped down in a nearby chair.

"She is, she really is – she even looks like it!" he said excitedly, grinning with her.

"What'd she do to you?" she questioned.

"Said that my hair was too long and that I should get it cut as '_any respectable young man would not go parading about with locks to his shoulders._'"

Hermione went into a fit of giggles, "You sound just like her!"

"Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week," he bowed.

Alice brightened at this, "Oh, you just reminded me!"

"What?" Emmeline asked as Sirius plopped down on the arm of her chair.

"Frank got next weekend off, he's coming to Hogsmeade to visit!" she said happily.

"Err, Alice, do we even have a Hogsmeade weekend that week?" Emmeline questioned.

Alice grinned sheepishly at Remus and Sirius, "Please?"

"Alice, we really can't – " Remus began.

"Please, oh please, Remus, can't you possibly find it in your heart to understand!" she begged, hands perched on the arm of the couch and leaning towards him earnestly, her eyes wide. "Surely you must understand! Imagine if you and Hermione were apart!"

"We've got mirrors," he teased.

She pouted, "That's not the same! You wouldn't be able to hug her or kiss her or play with her hair – and don't deny that you love doing that!"

He blushed a little as Hermione smirked a bit.

"Hah!" Hermione said, "Take that Umbridge – my boyfriend likes my hair!"

Sirius snorted before falling silent again, Emmeline watching the encounter with interest.

"Alice, that's going out of Hogwarts – the only really safe place there is right now - and into somewhere, at night, where Death Eaters could be," he frowned.

"Romeo and Juliet found a way to be together," Alice insisted.

"Alice, Romeo was anywhere from fifteen to twenty-three and Juliet was thirteen, they knew very little about each other, they got married without consent, and six people died," Hermione spoke again, "Remus is one, I'm two, Sirius is three, Emmeline is four, and you and Frank makes six."

"I'm not thirteen," she stood straighter and frowned at her friend.

"You look thirteen," Emmeline teased.

"Frank's not twenty-three," she insisted.

"Fifteen to twenty-three," Remus reminded her.

"We aren't married!" she huffed.

"Practically," Sirius muttered dully.

She groaned before Remus and Sirius glanced between each other and sighed.

"If we don't help you, you'll do it anyway and end up in a lot more trouble than you would have if we'd have gone, won't you?" Remus asked dully.

"Thank you!" she screamed happily, hugging him around the neck and skipping over to Sirius to peck him on the cheek. "Oh, you two are such sweethearts!"

Sirius rolled his eyes, "And the torture begins!"

* * *

**I'm really sorry I haven't updated in forever. **

**But aggghhh sophomore year, I hate it already.**


	23. The Infection

**Haha, I noticed that chapters twenty-one and twenty-two have titles that have something to do with frogs and toads. Purely coincidental, but I'm keeping it that way.**

**Also someone asked whether I was in college or high school. Sadly, I'm in high school with no idea what college I want to go into. But I want either an English major and a Drama minor or vice versa but apparently those aren't "realistic" and I should get something in "business" to "fall back on." Why can't I just write and act all day that's just what I want to do with my life I have no goals uggghhhhh I hate reality. **

* * *

"Are you guys ready?" Alice asked happily, bouncing on her toes as Remus and Sirius stepped through the portrait, Remus looking very cross at Sirius. She paused in her bouncing and looked around curiously, "Where's Hermione? Isn't she coming?"

"Well, she'd like to, but she can't," Remus glared at Sirius as he shrunk a little, "_Somebody_ broke her arm."

"I said sorry!" Sirius yelled back as Emmeline stepped through and laughed.

"Sirius, you were practically crying and saying 'oh Merlin, oh Merlin, what did I do'?" she laughed as he glared at her.

"Pomfrey said she'd be alright tomorrow morning, it broke in several places," Remus said.

"Hey, anyone know where James and Lily are?" Emmeline questioned.

"Supposedly studying," Alice hummed before brightening again, "Emmeline, do you want to come?"

"No, I'll go visit Hermione again in a minute, then work on some schoolwork," she said before smiling a little at Alice's pout, "Tell Frank I said 'hi' though."

"Alright," she shrugged before turning to Remus and Sirius and beaming as they winced back at each other, "C'mon, we haven't got all night!"

"How'd we get roped into this again?" Sirius asked his friend as they followed her out of the Common Room. Remus shrugged dully and rolled his eyes.

* * *

"Alice, I think we need to head back," Sirius hissed as he slid down the hill to where she and Frank were, Remus skidding along behind him as well.

"Why?" she asked, the two boys shushing her as Frank looked between them curiously.

"Umm, there are a few Death Eaters around this area," Sirius whispered, grabbing the girl's arm and towing her up as Frank stood as well.

"What're we doing? Fighting them or running?" Frank asked, looking between them.

"Well, us three aren't even supposed to be out here, so…yeah, it'd be best to run back to Hogwarts," Remus whispered, shrugging.

"Or we could listen," he said, climbing up the hill and making the two groan silently as Alice followed.

"Is this what our friends feel like when we're stubborn?" Sirius whispered, following the two as they slipped behind trees and got close enough to listen in.

"Has to be," Remus muttered, the four finally falling silent as the Death Eaters began talking.

"I dunno, it's pretty green – you think it's infected?" one asked, offering his left arm to his companion.

"Mate, I don't want that near me," he waved it away, a look of disgust on his face.

"But what do I do if it's infected?" the first asked worriedly, "I mean, is my arm gonna fall off?"

"We have more important things to worry about than your arm having a green gunk," the second said gruffly, "Finding that girl for the most part."

Remus and Sirius glanced between each other and arched an eyebrow as the first began to grumble.

"You'd worry about it if your Dark Mark was turning crusty and green," he muttered.

"Jason, I don't need to hear that!" he practically yelled.

"Well I'm sorry, that's all we ever hear about anymore!" he snapped back, "The girl's in Hogwarts – we can't touch her there, so I say just wait until she graduates, then make our move."

"The lady and the Dark Lord both say that time is of the essence," the second said.

Jason snorted, "I want to know why the Dark Lord's so trusting to her anyway. She's sketchy."

"That's not our business," the second said.

"I mean, the first time she showed up, she had blood on her sleeves and was grumbling about the Mudblood and four blokes and some dog that let her get away."

Sirius's eyes widened as he turned to Remus, whose face had gone pale but his eyes had narrowed. Alice was tilting her head curiously to Frank as he continued to listen.

Alice suddenly gave a scream as someone gripped her arm, whirling around and kicking whoever had gotten her, Frank and Sirius trying to shake him off as well as Remus quickly knocked the other two Death Eaters out.

"Off, off!" somebody barked, Sirius hissing out 'Bellatrix' to his friends as the Death Eater let go of Alice. "It's not her – it's some other girl!" She stepped closer and her eyes widened before her features settled into a smirk, "Oh, hullo, Sirius."

Sirius was forced into straightening, but he was still frowning, "Bella. You look particularly insane today."

"Oy, Sirius, shut it," Frank frowned, "Haven't you been reading the paper?"

"Of course not, Hogwarts won't let the ickle kiddies know what goes on in the big bad world," Bellatrix chuckled.

"You've been killing a whole bunch of girls," Frank declared as he glared at her, "Just for the heck of it."

"No, not for the heck of it," Bellatrix pouted, "Some stupid ones brought them there, they weren't the girl we were looking for, so we had to kill them lest they let something about our whereabouts slip."

"That's disgusting," Sirius wrinkled his nose.

"That's war, baby cousin!" she laughed, using the tip of her wand to tilt his chin up, "Of course, you probably know who we're after. Lots of curly brown hair, big brown eyes, Mudblood Gryffindor?"

Alice's eyes widened for an instant, shooting over to Remus as he silently pleaded with her to say nothing, and her eyes quickly returned back to normal.

"There's nobody like that – not a Gryffindor, at least," Alice answered. "I mean, Helena Hopkiss _maybe_, but she's just a little firstie."

"Ugh, brats," Bellatrix wrinkled her nose and rolled her eyes, glancing between the two Death Eaters, one hold Sirius and Remus's shoulders, the other holding Alice and Frank's. "I can't wait until I get promoted."

"Well, good news, you're only three murders away from getting to _psycho killer_!" Sirius exclaimed, glaring at her.

She beamed, "You really think so?"

"Ugh!" he groaned, slumping against the Death Eater, stealthily slipping his and Remus' wands out of his pocket, looking over to Remus to silently tell him so as he undid their bindings, "Can somebody please tell me I'm adopted?"

"Sure thing," Remus shrugged with a smile, offering his hand, which startled the three, "Give it."

He slapped the wand in his hand, Sirius whirling around on his cousin as Remus got the Death Eater behind him and the one holding Frank and Alice. Bellatrix left with a pop instead of fighting her cousin, making him growl as Remus released Frank and Alice.

"Congratulations, Sirius," Remus said with a grin, "You're adopted."

Sirius's face lit up and he lifted his arms to the sky, tilting his head heavenwards as well, "Praise Jeebus!"

"Jeebus?" Frank snorted, blinking at him, "Sirius, that's not it."

He returned his face back to them, "It's not?"

"No," Frank shook his head.

"Then what is it?"

Frank stared at him for a moment before turning back to the unconscious Death Eaters, "You guys go back to Hogwarts – I'll call in some Aurors. How much do you want to leave out?"

"All the stuff that involves us being out of school," Alice said, glancing back at Remus, who wouldn't meet her gaze, "But if it's important, keep it in."

"Frank," Remus caught his attention, "Leave out everything about the girl that they're hunting."

Frank blinked at him, "But, Remus, the girl must be important for them to be hunting people who even remotely _look_ like her. We can't just – "

"Frank, she is important, but it's none of the Ministry's business," he pleaded.

He arched an eyebrow at him, frowning until Alice grabbed his arm.

"Love, just…listen to Remus on this one. He seems to know what's going on here," she said.

"Thanks, Alice," he sighed, smiling gratefully at her.

She nodded, but wouldn't smile, "Let's head back to Hogwarts."

"Good idea – if we hang around in these woods any longer, we might see my mother," Sirius wrinkled his nose, making Frank roll his eyes, smile and shake his head.

"Those Marauders – how did I put up with them?" Frank asked himself as they walked off, making the three crack very small grins.

* * *

**Okay I'll write more, I swear, it's just that I'm supposed to be cleaning my room because people are coming over in like an hour but whatever I don't care they have no business in my room anyway.**


	24. The Nonsense of Reality

**Dost Mother know thou weareth her drapes?**

**I dunno. I'm tired and have school in the morning. NO REGRETS, LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST AND ALL THAT JAZZ.**

* * *

"Alice _knows_?"

"Well, she knows that the Death Eaters are after you, not that you're – well, you know," Remus shrugged.

Hermione groaned and flopped back against her pillow, her arm in a sling as she ran her free hand over her eyes, "This can't be happening. She can't know. You four aren't even supposed to know."

Remus winced apologetically at her, "You can't really tell what Alice will do, though. Hermione, who's your best friend in this time?"

She opened her eyes and pursed her lips, "Alice is."

"And why is that?"

"She doesn't ask anything that makes me uncomfortable – she knows when to back off and what to say. She's actually a conniving little bugger too, come to think of it."

"Exactly – so you've got two Alices. One who won't ask questions, and one who'll find some way to get you to spill. But would she tell if she did know?"

She thought about it before blinking, "No."

"You had to trust us enough until you told us, right? Part of that trust was already built up from before you came here, part of it was after you got here," Remus said, setting his elbows on the edge of her bed, "You've spent so much time with each of us, that Alice has gone from being somebody you barely knew to being your best friend, I've gone from just being your werewolf Potions partner to being your boyfriend, and James and Sirius are practically your older brothers now."

"What about Lily, Emmeline, and Peter?" she asked.

"Lily and Emmeline, as I see it, are like your sisters, who get on your nerves but you love them all the same," he grinned before turning thoughtful again, "Peter…I dunno. Next door neighbor who doesn't want to get sucked into the crazy?"

She chuckled and sat up, swinging her legs over the side to lean towards him and peck him on the forehead, "Alright, I'll see what happens with Alice."

"Alright," he smiled back, looking up at her.

She pecked him on the lips, smiling when she pulled back, "Happy Birthday, though."

"Hah, you remembered," he grinned up at her.

"Uh-huh," she chirped, pecking his cheek, "Sorry I didn't get you a present, I was going to get it last night until Sirius broke my arm."

"Don't worry about it," he was still smiling, standing up to peck her on the nose, "I've got to go, class is going to start soon. When did Pomfrey say you'd be released again?"

"Somewhere around noon, I should be down for lunch," she smiled, "See you."

"See you," he said before walking out of the Hospital Wing.

* * *

"Hey, Hermione?" Alice whispered across the silent dorm rooms, "You awake?"

"Yeah," she whispered back, opening a bed curtain and glancing at Lily and Emmeline, Christina's bed empty once again.

"Mind if I pop over? I want to talk to you about something," she said, slipping out of her bed when she nodded and climbing into hers. Hermione got her wand off the nightstand and made sure nobody else would hear. "I'm guessing Remus told you what I heard last night?"

"Yeah," she sighed and bit her lip.

"Are you in any trouble?" she asked curiously, "Is there any reason _why_ they're after you?"

"I've got reasons, Alice, reasons _why_ it led up to what it did, but I can't tell you – not right now, anyway," Hermione said before releasing another breath, "The woman they talked about, she killed my parents and would've done the same to me if the Marauders hadn't followed me out in the woods and stopped her. She must've gone to Voldemort after that and got his help somehow to find me. Alice, I'm going to be in big trouble after school – I've already worked it out how to fake my death, actually."

Alice absorbed this before furrowing her eyebrows, "You said it."

"Said what?" she blinked.

"His name," she hummed before her lips twitched into a smile, "You're extremely brave. I only know Dumbledore would say it."

"Fear of the name increases the fear of the thing," Hermione said, "It's just a name. C'mon, you say it."

She fidgeted, "V-Voldemort?"

Hermione grinned, "Congratulations, you've stopped being afraid of the name."

She snorted, rolling her eyes and grinning as she tucked her short brown hair behind her ear, "Yeah, thanks. But why your family?"

Hermione sighed and rubbed her eyes, "I don't know. I'd thought the woman was on our side – I'd met her once, before I came here, and then the next thing I know she's sending out people to kill me."

"I'm sorry," Alice said after a long pause, looking at her hands, "But sometimes I forget we're at war. It just…doesn't seem possible inside Hogwarts. It's the only safe place here."

Hermione closed her eyes and tried to keep the images out of her head, "I hope it stays that way."

"Me too," she said quietly, "I'll see you in the morning."

"Alright – goodnight, Alice," she whispered as she climbed out of her bed.

"G'night," she answered before crawling back into her own.

Hermione thumped against her pillow and stared at the curtains, absentmindedly playing with her fingers.

* * *

"You haven't been sleeping," Emmeline accused, poking her friend in the side with her fork, making her yelp.

Hermione glared at Emmeline and leaned further into Remus's side, glaring at the eating utensil as well, "Maybe it's because I've got terrible friends who think it's acceptable to poke people with forks."

"You were about to fall asleep in your lunch, I thought it was a justifiable poking agent," she sniffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Why haven't you been sleeping?" Remus asked curiously, making her sigh and place her head on his shoulder.

"Because it's starting to get a little too real. Tests, end of the year, end of Hogwarts, going out into all this 'real world' nonsense. I hate it," she answered.

"You need to be sleeping though," Lily frowned. "It can't be healthy."

"Not my fault," Hermione muffled, as she'd turned her face into Remus's shoulder, making him laugh and grin at her as he wrapped her arms around her.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I don't even _know_," she replied sadly, pulling her face out and pouting now, "My brain died somewhere around breakfast."

"How long has this been going on?" James asked curiously.

Hermione winced and hid her eyes with her fingers, "A week."

"Hermione!" her friends all seemed to chorus.

"I can't sleep!" she cried out once more. "I can't really control it!"

Remus shook his head at her, "Can you even make it to our next class?"

Hermione was silent for a few moments before pulling away sharply, looking at him with wide eyes, "What even _is_ that class?"

"Hermione," he said slowly, "It's Transfiguration. You love Transfiguration."

Her hands crept into her hair and she grimaced, "I told you my brain died!"

"C'mon, we're talking to McGonagall," he insisted, standing up now.

"No," she said stubbornly, holding on to the bench and frowning up at him, "I can make it to the end of the day."

"I hardly believe that," he frowned, crossing his arms over his chest.

"No," she repeated, gripping the bench tighter.

* * *

"Put me down," she mumbled sleepily, her arms slung carelessly over his shoulders as he climbed the stairs.

"Hermione, you're going to bed," he insisted.

"Can't get me up to the girls' dorms," she yawned.

Remus paused before smirking, continuing to climb up the stairs, "Alright, then."

"Where're you taking me now?" she asked as they passed the Fat Lady, who watched them go curiously as Remus climbed another set of stairs. He didn't answer, instead kept walking, still carrying his sleepy girlfriend as he passed the same blank wall once, twice, three times before a door appeared. He slipped it open with his foot, letting it shut as he set Hermione on the futon.

She stuck her tongue out stubbornly at him and began to sit up, but he grabbed her shoulder and guided her back down.

"Hermione, you fell asleep in Defense," he frowned, "Why can't you sleep, really?"

She looked up at him and sat up, slowly, bringing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them as he sat down next to her, "I keep seeing Hogwarts the way it was when the Battle broke out. I've stopped seeing it how you do completely, because I know what it's like when it's not safe and I know what it's like when it's in pieces. And then I keep seeing _them_ and I've started getting nightmares again, and I would make a potion but I feel like that's the only way I can remember that I've known them and I was friends with them and I just…I…."

"Hermione, you can remember them without losing sleep," he said, grabbing her hands and holding them in his. "Here, they might not end up the way they did then. We can stop it."

"I just…can't not see it," she said, getting up and curling up in his lap. "I miss them."

"I know you do," he said, kissing her temple and rubbing up and down her arms, "But you need to sleep." He was silent for a few moments, but so was she, so he tilted his head curiously to her and smiled when he saw she was finally asleep. He chuckled and slowly deposited her on the futon, standing up and throwing a blanket over her, sitting down in the floor by her and kissing her nose. "Goodnight, Hermione."

* * *

**I have school in the morning but I needed this done for my sanity.**


	25. The Weird Sleeping Arrangements

**I have actually made plans with friends this weekend, so I wouldn't be able to update like I wanted to. Yay for speed-writing!**

* * *

"Remus."

"Hmm?" he mumbled sleepily, rubbing an eye as something pecked his head, attempting to wake him up. He opened his eyes and tilted his head up to look at Hermione, who was smiling down at him.

"Come up here," she whispered, her hands in his hair as he had leaned his head onto her lap.

"Why?" he asked, suppressing a yawn as he stood and sat next to her, making her frown and tug on his arm.

"You fell asleep on the floor," she said, finally tugging him into her, effectively pinning herself as he pushed himself up on his elbows, blinking down at her as she grinned up at him. "You can't sleep on the floor. It'll hurt."

"I don't think me sleeping on you would be better," he frowned playfully.

She reached her hands up and gently lowered his head down next to hers, kissing his hair as he sighed and wrapped his arms around her to the best of his abilities. She pulled her legs up from hanging off the side of the futon and threw them over his, making him smile and close his eyes, kissing her neck.

"Goodnight, Remus," she muttered to him.

"G'night," he muttered back.

* * *

"The N.E.W.T.s are tomorrow," Lily said, rocking back and forth in her chair, rubbing her arms. "They're tomorrow and we're leaving Hogwarts in a week."

"Lily, calm down," Sirius advised.

"Calm down?" she repeated, rather hysterically, "Calm _down_?"

"Well would you like to calm _up_?" he asked. "Look at Hermione – she's okay."

"I just realized I have no power over my future, that's all," she shrugged, hanging off the chair with her hair nearly touching the ground, "May any and all deities have mercy upon my soul."

"Well that's…better," he grimaced before glancing to Remus, who was on the couch next to Hermione, one hand playing with her hair absentmindedly as he read from a text book. "Well at least you two go great together," he muttered under his breath with a small smile.

"I'm sorry?" Remus blinked and looked up at his friend.

Sirius grinned at them and snorted, rolling his eyes, "Nothing. Go back to studying."

He shrugged and did as he was asked, still playing with Hermione's hair as she twirled around her wand dully.

Sirius glanced at Lily, who smiled up at him and nodded back, agreeing with his earlier statement about their two friends.

* * *

"You're hers."

"What?" Remus asked, looking up from his book to see Sirius grinning and sauntering into the dorms. "I'm who's?"

"Hermione's," he smirked as he flopped onto his bed, making his friend frown and pick his book up, as it had bounced off. "You're her Moony."

Remus blinked at him before he grinned, saying nothing as he went back to his book.

"Hermione. Moony. Her-moony. Hermoony."

"It was cute before, now hush," he frowned at him.

"It's still cute, it's just interrupting your studying."

"Yes, now hush."

Sirius stood with a sigh and left the room, leaving a few moments of silence before Remus started smiling again.

* * *

**'OhMyGodricgirl' gave me a PM saying that a good ship name for Hermione and Remus would be 'Hermoony.' I found a double meaning in it, as you saw here – "Her Moony." You can choose to use it or not, but we like it and I thought I'd share it here with you guys. Plus, I wanted lots of fluffy moments for those two. **

**PS – I have absolutely no idea how they slept the way they did. Somebody needs to see a chiropractor or something. **


	26. The Quidditch Cup

**So in Acting class there's a closet, right? Well, all of a sudden – and I'm the only one watching – the door starts to open and Jose hops out and grabs his water and straightens his shirt and shit and I'm all like "how long have you been in there?!" and he shrugs and goes "a while. Didn't you see me walk back in here?" And of course not, but neither did a whole bunch of other people, including Marissa, Shelby and Manuella, and Destiny. In fact, about our whole class didn't notice that he'd walked into our classroom through one of the connecting doors, across our "stage" and into the closet to take a nap. **

**I freaking love that class.**

* * *

_Name the five characteristics of a werewolf._

Remus pursed his lips and made a huge effort to refrain from putting everything that described him. He heard James snort, as he had apparently come across to that question as well, while Sirius was grinning madly beside him. He wrote down the correct answers, sad that the perfect joke had gone once again.

He glanced over at Hermione, blinking when he saw that her chin was in her hand and she was staring out of the window, her quill in her hair and her legs swinging lazily. She couldn't possibly be _done_, could she? There was absolutely no way.

"Done, Miss Granger?" the supervisor asked, already taking her paper up and scanning across it, expecting to see that she'd written nothing, her eyebrows climbing when she saw how much she'd written and how well it was. She cleared her throat and looked around, hoping that nobody saw her give away how well this girl had done on her Defense Against the Dark Arts N.E.W.T.s exam, but she missed the fact that Remus had quickly ducked his head back down with a grin.

_What is a boggart, and what have you seen in any past experiences with one? Would it still be the same now?_

Remus answered the first part before pausing, wondering if it would be the same. A lot had changed since they'd gone over it in fourth year. He glanced back at Hermione again, knowing exactly what had changed and who had changed it.

Just as he was about to answer the last half, a loud sneeze came from Sirius next to him, followed by a distressed yell.

"No!" he exclaimed, looking fearfully at his paper, "Why!"

The supervisor sighed and set Hermione's paper on the teacher's desk, walking towards Sirius to fix his sneezed-on paper. James hid his grin behind his fist, Remus twisting around to grin back at him.

"Poor Sirius – allergic to the test," Hermione sighed, leaning back a little and running her hands through her hair, "Is that why you never study?"

A few people chuckled as Sirius glared at her.

"Hush, Kitten," he hissed, making her roll her eyes and grin cheekily at him.

"Back to work," the woman ordered.

"What if I have to sneeze too?" Alice asked, looking innocently at the woman as Emmeline turned her head away with a fake cough, laughing with Lily.

She blinked at Alice before frowning, "Cover."

"With what?" she asked, "I don't want to get it on my hands or shirt or anything."

"Miss Prewitt, work," she ordered.

"Fine, but we'll have a sneezing epidemic and all of the papers will be covered with bogeys," she sighed, shrugging and adding a few marks to her paper before handing it over. "Could at least get some tissues or something."

She sighed and rolled her eyes, setting her paper with Hermione's a few other students'.

* * *

"James, calm down," Lily ordered with a frown, as he was jumping up and down with a worried expression on his face.

"Can't," he replied simply.

"James, you'll win the Quidditch Cup for sure," she reassured as Remus and Hermione walked down to them, Emmeline, Alice, Peter and Sirius watching their friend freak out. Halfway between this group and the pitch, Scarlett was freaking out as well, Olivia and Alexis trying to soothe her as much as possible.

"You'll do great," Hermione smiled.

"Ugh," he groaned, stopping and dragging his hands over his face, slumping over, "Fine. Right. Yeah, okay, let's go fail everybody!"

"You're the captain – you can't tell them that!" Remus reminded him as he started to walk off.

James stopped and thought this over, "Oh, right. Thanks."

Lily bit her thumb nail, glancing over at Sirius and Emmeline, "What do you guys think?"

"He'll get his head in the game the second they step on the pitch," Emmeline shrugged.

"He always does this – he just wouldn't before because he didn't want you to see," Sirius snorted, starting them on their walk to the stands.

"Oh," Lily said smartly, frowning a little as she held on to her bag, pausing in her walk before she caught back up with them, "But he's always so confident, out there – "

"Not really – he's just any normal…any normal…" Peter searched for the right word.

"Weirdo," Remus supplied with a grin, Hermione jabbing him lightly in the ribs as the others laughed and took their seats.

"He'll be fine, Lily, don't worry," Alice smiled before taking on a manic grin, "Now let's watch those Slytherins get beat into a pulp!"

"Sometimes I wonder how Frank puts up with her," Sirius snorted.

"Hush, they're starting," Lily chided, flicking his hair.

It started off alright, up until the five minute mark where Caecillus Jones kicked Scarlett off her broom, where she clambered back onto hers with a growl. And then it was off, half of the show being Quidditch, the other half being the fight. It was only just allowed, McGonagall's face slowly turning redder and redder as the game went on. Sirius and Remus had to jump up and tow Lily back down when somebody aimed a Bludger at James, although it was beaten back by Scarlett, where it barely missed Caecillus's ear.

"Whoops!" Scarlett had called with a smug grin, her dark brown hair whirling around her head, slipping out of her ponytail, "Sorry!"

"Not sorry?" James had asked, just loud enough for her to hear, making her grin wider and nod before they continued on with the game.

* * *

"It's not that bad," Hermione said, tugging James' head up a little and twisting it a little to look at the cut, "You shouldn't have to go to Madame Pomfrey."

"Hermione, it's cutting through his eyebrow," Lily frowned. "He's got one piece of eyebrow and then a little dot."

"Could just wax it off," she hummed dully, dabbing up the blood with a rag, "The scar cut it off."

"Hah-hah, hah, no," James frowned up at her, "Let go of my head and let me celebrate."

"Would you like to celebrate with blood running down into your eye?" Remus asked.

"We won the Quidditch cup!" he exclaimed with a grin, "I'm ready to graduate now."

"Yeah, everything really important is out of the way now," Alice blinked, "Weird."

"Mmn," Sirius hummed, staring out of the window, watching the rain fall. A few silent moments passed before he finally spoke, "I'm never going to forget this."

"Well I should hope not," Hermione said, the four boys grinning at her as the girls looked on in confusion.

"What?"

"Nothing," she smiled. _Just that you've been friends with a werewolf for seven years, who is dating a girl formerly from the future, who is patching up your best friend whose family has practically adopted you._ "Just…nothing."

* * *

**Has anybody ever heard of A) Steam Powered Giraffe B) Regina Spektor C) Chameleon Circuit or D) All of the above? Just a question – I love them so.**

**Have a nice day!**


	27. The Miscommunication

_"__Hello Goodbye, Twas nice to know you / How I find myself without you / That I'll never know" – _Honeybee by _Steam Powered Giraffe_

* * *

"Go sit with them," Hermione grinned, pushing Remus into the compartment with James, Sirius, and Peter, "Finish Hogwarts the way you started it."

Emmeline wrinkled up her nose and arched an eyebrow at Hermione, "In that case, I'll have to find my sister."

"Yeah, Moony, Hermione can certainly manage to ride in a train by herself," Sirius chuckled, ruffling up his friend's hair.

Remus grinned and rolled his eyes, leaning towards her and using the doorframe so he wouldn't fall, kissing her temple, "I'll see you at the station."

"Alright," she nodded, ignoring James and Sirius cooing over them. "See you."

He smiled and let the door shut, sitting down next to James and ignoring the three's grins, trying not to blush.

"You two are so cute," James said, laying his head on his friend's shoulder, "Moony, please marry her so we can be surrounded by this cuteness forever and ever."

"Atman," Sirius nodded.

Remus snorted, "It's 'amen,' Sirius, not 'Atman.'"

"Really?" he blinked, "Well, what's 'Atman'?"

"In Hinduism, it's like the soul," he explained with a grin, shoving James's head off. "Egyptians have the 'ka,' and so on and so forth.

"What's a Hindu?" he asked blankly.

Remus and James exchanged glances and groaned, shaking their heads at him.

"Your parents really stunted your intellectual growth," James sighed.

"They what my what?" he blinked, although now he was messing with them. Remus reached out and kicked his knee playfully, laughing with them.

* * *

"Where's the girls?" Sirius asked, looking around, "We're supposed to be there around now."

"Be where?" Remus asked.

"It's a surprise," he said with a grin, glancing past him and blinking, "Oh…."

Remus turned and looked, feeling the air get knocked out of him and his brain slow to mush as concerned people stooped down to the figure. "I-is that…?"

"C'mon, Remus," James whispered, grabbing his friend's shoulder. But all he could see was the blood and the crazy curly brown hair that looked very much like the kind he liked to play with.

"But that's…what happened, is she…?" he started to move forward, but Sirius grabbed his other shoulder and his elbow as well, dragging him a little, "That's Hermione."

"Remus, c'mon, it'll be dangerous in a few seconds," James hissed.

"But that's Hermione!" he looked desperately up at his friends, struggling now, "Hermione - !"

"Remus, honestly, _hush!_" Sirius chided, towing him around a column as Peter jogged up to them, their trunks shrunk down into his pockets. They were then sucked away, onto a front porch stoop to where they were nearly toppling over one another.

"That was Hermione and we just left her!" Remus finally said at a loud enough tone, James opening the front door and shoving their friend in.

"You forgot to tell him!" James yelled, getting a portrait at the landing of the stairs started, slandering Mudbloods and blood traitors and werewolves and the like.

"Oh, Remus, I'm sorry!" somebody said, making him whirl around to look blankly at his girlfriend, who was wincing at him as she dropped a book on a table, stepping up to him.

"But I saw you at King's Cross and you were…." he couldn't bring himself to say it. He didn't like the idea of it happening. _If you think about it long and hard enough, it'll happen, whether it's good or bad._

"That was the plan, to get all the Death Eater's off of me so I could go Horcrux hunting," she said, "I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you, I should've, but I - "

He grabbed her arms and yanked her into him, hugging her tightly and sighing, "Just don't ever scare me like that again."

She wriggled and managed to pull her arms out from in between them and hug his torso. "M'kay," she muffled, making him grin into her hair.

"Best girlfriend in the world," Sirius teased sarcastically as he passed, making Hermione attempt to swat at him and keep hugging Remus. Remus shook his head at the two, but pecked her hair with a smile.

* * *

**I didn't really want to go into detail because it'd be Hermione appearing to be dead and I'd have absolutely no idea what Remus would've felt because like _can you imagine_ it's the first girl he's ever liked that's ever liked him back and they're freaking dating and she knows that he's a werewolf and she's even made him this potion for that and he gets to play with her hair and they're cuddly little babies and then it just looks like she's _dead_ and without making everyone sad I think his brain would just be all "what the hell."**

**This has been your run-on sentence by Ava.**


	28. The Biggest Prat Ever

**So – uhh, yeah. What to say here? Nothing? Sounds good.**

* * *

Hermione walked casually into the living room of Grimmauld Place, her hair rumpled up and a scorch mark in her sweater, smiling at Remus before she saw the frown on his face. She was about to open her mouth to ask what was wrong when he grabbed her wrist and towed her on the seat next to him, pointing soundlessly to the kitchen, where a few new Order members were talking.

"I don't get it," one, Kyle, said. Hermione's lips pursed – Kyle had been flirting with her since he'd gotten there, even when she told him to back off or she'd make him. So he wasn't exactly on her list of favorite newbies. "I don't see why Dumbledore thinks it's okay."

"Thinks what's okay?" another, Clarisse, Emmeline's younger sister, asked.

"To have a werewolf in the Order, of course!" he said, making Hermione stand up suddenly, although Remus quickly lunged for her arms and towed her into his lap. "It's dangerous to all of us, especially the girl he's dating. Can you imagine?"

"Oh shut up," Clarisse snapped.

"You don't see it, your sister is friends with them," he insisted, "He's a monster, he's a murderer – "

"Don't talk about him like that!"

"Face facts – he's trouble." The conversation stopped as the back door slammed, Sirius greeting the few in the kitchen.

Hermione let out an annoyed huff of air, looking up at Remus and blinking when she saw him wincing, loosening his grip on her waist. She reached up and pecked his jaw, making him relax and wrap his arms around her again, smiling and kissing the side of her nose.

"Ugh, get a room," Sirius snorted, rolling his eyes as he pulled a few pieces of paper out of his mouth.

"We _had one_," Hermione defended, still in Remus's lap with her hands up in his hair as Kyle walked in and saw them, pursing his lips and narrowing his eyes but saying nothing. "You just walked into it."

"Sorry, Kitten, it's a public-ish space," he grinned, throwing the papers on the coffee table in front of them. "You gonna stop cuddling your boyfriend to keep my breakfast in my stomach?"

"Mmnn…" she hummed, looking up at Remus as he chuckled and grinned down at her, "Nope!"

"Ugh, I regret the day I ever agreed with your relationship," he joked, smiling at the two.

"Payback from when we were in Hogwarts," Remus spoke up, although it was a little bit muffled as he kissed Hermione's temple.

"PDA!" Emmeline pointed out as she walked in from the kitchen, Clarisse giggling at her sister before she saw who it was. "Aww! This is okay PDA! It's cute!"

"And I'm done here," Hermione blushed, standing up before kissing Remus, trying to fight down a smirk as Clarisse shot a glare over at Kyle, who was blushing and trying to sink down in a chair to hide.

* * *

"He's a prick, he has absolutely no right to do that to you," she insisted.

Remus chuckled and grabbed her wrist, towing her in front of him as he sat on the edge of her bed, grabbing her shoulders and looking at her eyes, "Hermione, with all that's going on, you have enough to worry about. I'm fine, I'm mad he thinks that about me, but I'm not going to worry about it. You've got enough to think about."

She sighed and frowned at him, "Fine."

"Good girl," he grinned, pulling her to sit next to him, "How's the hunt coming?"

"Found the one in the Gaunt place," she said, flicking a piece of lint off of her bedspread dully, "Killed it."

"How many is left then?" he asked, leaning back on his hands.

"Uhh…necklace, cup, diary, and maybe or maybe not the snake," she hummed, "We've killed the diadem and the ring."

"And how did that one go?" he asked slowly as she began to wince a little.

"It could've gone better," she admitted, just as hesitant. "I mean, he tried to attack me and everything, but I was lucky Dumbledore was there or else something bad would've happened." She arched an eyebrow as he tried to remain calm, grinning a little at him, "You alright?"

"Yeah, fine," he lied, making her give a laugh and peck his cheek for trying anyway.

* * *

**Umm…yeah. Hi. …I don't know what to say in author's notes sometimes. But it looks weird without something at the end where I can leave off on my documents. Makes me feel like I forgot something.**


	29. The Healing Process

"Oww, oww!"

"Hermione, shhh," Remus whispered, gripping her arm gently, looking into her eyes. Her hair was hanging limply around her, hiding her eyes and – more importantly – the cuts on her face. They were all over her, in various sizes and locations, and her clothes weren't in good shape either. Remus had heard her curse when she'd gotten to the bottom of the stairs and was surprised to see his girlfriend like this. He'd dragged her into his room to fix her up, but this was proving much more difficult than he'd thought. "Hermione, you have to take off your shirt."

"_No_," she insisted, her jaw set as color rushed to her cheeks.

"Love," he murmured seriously, "The blood is seeping in to the shirt and bringing it closer. It'll be harder and hurt more to get the fabric of your shirt out. Plus, I can't get them if there's a shirt in my way. I will even act mature and focus on healing you."

She stared up at him, "I can do it."

"No, Sweetheart, you can't," he insisted, smoothing her hair back from her face, "You can't see all of them or get to them. Plus, you'll be too busy explaining how this happened to you."

She whimpered and fidgeted, taking a deep breath before easing it over her head, staring at a wall as he moved to her back and conjured up a hair-tie, tying her hair up carefully on the top of her head. He set to work on her back, making her wince and gasp at the pain. "I was – ah – looking for the ring. Gaunt's ring?"

"Mhmm," he urged her on, his eyes fixed on the small of her back.

"Well, I went to the – ah – house," she winced when he started on the back of her legs. "I thought it'd be empty, which was foolish, and I let my guard down. I didn't know that Morfin was there and – ahh – long story short, I narrowly escaped being nailed to the door."

"What?" Remus stood up abruptly and looked at her worriedly in the mirror, where she stiffly moved her arms to cover her chest.

"He spoke Parseltongue, and he would say to snakes '_hissy, hissy, little snakey, slither on the floor, you be good to Morfin, or he'll nail you to the door._'"

"Dear Merlin," he said, coming around to the front of her, momentarily forgetting about his task, "How did you - ?"

"Remus," she reminded him, making him nod and work on her arms, staring for a few moments at a word carved into her arm.

"Hermione…?" he questioned, running his thumb over it, as it was old and attempting to heal.

"I've been through a great deal, Remus," she murmured, making him nod and stare at it for one more moment before shaking his head and going back to work. When he was done with her body and about to work on her face, he tugged open a drawer and grabbed one of his shirts. It was a gray-ish green and long-sleeved. "Here," he said, allowing her to tug it over her head and shift it into place, shoving the sleeves up to her elbows as her jean shorts disappeared underneath. He set his wand to her face, smiling when she looked up at him through her lashes. When he was done with that, he pecked her cheek and sighed.

"I can't seem to keep you out of trouble, can I?" he asked, making her smile and step into his arms, wrapping her own around his waist. He pecked her head, rocking them back and forth slightly. "Please, just promise me you'll try to be safe more often." He felt her nod, sitting down on the edge of his bed and pulling her in with him.

* * *

**Sorry for the long update time! But, Happy Thanksgiving if you celebrate it! If not, go out and get some pie anyway!**


	30. The Balloon People

**Guys, it's alright to leave me reviews, you know. In fact, I strongly encourage it.**

**Also, no spoilers for Paper Towns, alright? I am halfway through, do not ruin this for me. On a sidenote: _FUCKING MARGO, MAN._**

* * *

It was a lazy morning. No alarm clocks had rung, no birds had screeched, no sun was creeping in through the blinds to disturb anyone. Hermione shifted closer to the warm body by her side, although she was only half-conscious, and he was holding her close to him and running his thumb up and down her spine in a way that was making her begin to fall asleep again. A door creaked open and her bed partner gave a quiet groan and thumped against the pillow.

"What?" Sirius's voice seeped through.

"Go away," Remus demanded.

"Her shirt's on the floor," he said, confusion and glee evident in his voice, "Why is her shirt on the floor if you guys didn't – "

"Out of my room, Sirius," Remus ordered once more.

"I'm just curi – "

"Out," he growled. Sirius sighed and the door was shut carefully, making Remus shake his head and run a hand through her hair. She stretched and looked up at him, making him smile as she absently reminded him of a cat, especially when she went right back into her original position and releasing a slow breath before she froze and looked back up at him, her eyes wide and her cheeks red.

"I just totally realized how this must look," she explained, making him chuckle and hug her and peck the side of her head. She buried her face in her hands, placing both against his chest in mortification.

* * *

Hermione was staring out of the window, her mouth set into a frown as she watched the rain drop down from the sky. They splattered on the sidewalk and grass, committing suicide in a sense. Remus walked by and stopped when he noticed that his girlfriend actually seemed kind of mad at the rain, for whatever reason that he couldn't seem to fathom. A book was hanging limply in her hand, her fingers marking her place as her other hand held her chin as she stared. He set down his own book and walked over to her, sitting down next to her legs and watching out with her.

"What's wrong?" he asked after a few moments.

"Nothing," she said with a sigh, attempting to go back to the book. He turned and looked at her, frowning a little as he attempted to figure this Hermione-mystery out. She shifted, another glance out the window, and looked back at the book with a frown. He looked at the cover, only it was old and the words had long since been worn away. He rested his cheek against her leg, looking up at her.

"Something's up," he decided, making her sigh again and throw the book aside, moving down in the floor with him.

"Before I left to come here, I was halfway into this good book called _Paper Towns._ I thought I'd be back to finish it and know how it would end, but obviously not. And now I've got to wait twenty years to finish a book, plus I'm stuck inside because everyone thinks I'm _dead_, and I just really either want to go outside or get a good book."

He placed his head in her lap, looking up at her as she ran her hands through his hair, "What if I found out a way for you to go outside?"

The side of her mouth twitched, "I might have to kiss you."

He grinned and sat up, kissing her before standing and walking off, leaving her to stare after him with an arched eyebrow before smiling to herself and shaking her head.

* * *

"Well?"

Remus nodded slowly, although he was internally grimacing and shaking his head. She had thick, straight blonde hair that hung to her waist, dull gray eyes staring back at him as she awaited his approval or otherwise. "You look…."

She frowned, looking at him with a smirk in her eyes as well, "You don't like it."

He opened his mouth to say something along the lines of liking how _she, _Hermione, normally looked, including her crazy curly brown hair and her brown eyes and how they'd light up when she was excited and how they'd crinkle when she gave an honest-to-God smile, when Sirius walked in and blinked at the young woman.

"Uhh, Remus, you know her?" Sirius asked.

"It's Hermione," Remus said with a smile as Hermione began to change her features again. "She wants to go outside, but everyone thinks she's dead so naturally she's got to disguise herself."

"Might wanna disguise you too, Mate," Sirius commented, "Just to be safe."

"I wanna do it!" Hermione said brightly.

The next thing Remus knew, he was on his stomach on the floor, Hermione's hands running through his hair and touching his face to change them. He laughed and attempted to protest, but she only laughed them away and let him up to inspect his reflection in the mirror. He blinked at the brown-eyed, purple haired reflection, the cheek bones and jawline different on him as well. A girl popped up beside him, smiling with amber eyes and short, curly blue hair.

He snorted and looked at her, making her laugh, "You distracted me from doing it properly! So you've got purple hair!"

"And you've got blue," he laughed back before sobering up. "Ready?"

"Yes!" she said brightly, grabbing his arm and attempting to drag him out of the house. Sirius watched all of this with a quiet smile, James coming in halfway through Hermione changing Remus's hair and chuckling quietly and shaking his head at them.

* * *

"Good day?" Remus asked.

"Yes!" Hermione beamed back at him, still with the curly blue hair, although it had started to lengthen and her eyes had changed back to their usual brown, her face rounding out, rather than being particularly angular. She stopped their walk back to Grimmauld Place, wrapping her arms around his neck as he wrapped his around her waist. "Merlin, you've done so much for me."

He rolled his eyes, smiling down at her, "Hermione."

"No, I mean it," she insisted, "You fixed me up and you found me a way out of that house and you worry about me and remind me that I'm not a machine. You want to know something?"

"Hmm?" he questioned, swaying them a little.

"You're actually really brilliant," she smiled. He grinned and pecked her forehead, pulling back and smiling even wider when a curl in the front started to turn brown.

"I've got a lot to thank you for as well, you know," he said, "You gave me that potion and you're with me even with that in mind, and I can't believe how incredible you are."

She smiled up at him, getting closer enough to whisper quietly with glee, "What do you think the people across the street would think to see two kids with purple and blue hair kissing under the streetlamp?"

"Crazy kids," he muttered back with a grin before kissing her, making her run her hands through his hair. They soon headed back to Grimmauld Place, to their separate rooms as their features sorted themselves back out. They completely ignored the fact that they got in at two in the morning, as did everyone else. As long as they were safe, it was alright.

* * *

**Am I a bad person for wanting to write as much fluff as possible and neglect the plot for a bit? **

**Oh, and also, if you want a winter-themed, holiday-present, there's a poll on the top of my bio. Please pick only one pairing and one theme (somebody didn't listen and picked two themes. It wouldn't have bugged me if it helped me with the pairings, but _themes. _Gah.)**


	31. The Mixing Bowl

**I know I need to work on this I want to work on this but I don't know how to pace myself so I jump to things I want to write and I just**

* * *

"Hermione…Hermione…Her_mi_o_ne_. Lady. Sleepy Woman with the Bushy Hair. Wake _up_, dammit!"

"Goodbye Alice or Emmeline," Hermione muffled into her pillow, opening her eyes when she felt two beings climb up into the bed with her. She rolled onto her back, blinking blearily at her two friends. "Or both. Didn't hear both."

"Come on, we're having a girls' day and night," Emmeline patted her leg.

Hermione groaned and rolled her face into her pillow, "Don't wanna."

"Come on," Alice whined, leaning over her to see her face, "We never just hang out with each other. Life is too short! Carpe diem! Or, in our case, carpe friendsum! Seize the friends!"

"That was so lame," Hermione chuckled before flinging the covers off of her with a sigh, "Fine, fine, alright, I'm up, I'm up." Emmeline and Alice cheered before grabbing her wrists and Apparating away with her before she could even think about changing out of her pajamas.

She was met by Lily, laying on a couch and humming, also in her pajamas as well, although her hair was considerably tamed. They plopped Hermione in the armchair, where she flung her legs over the side and tilted her head back to the ceiling.

"Dearly beloved," Emmeline began, "We are gathered here today to celebrate the joys of friendship."

"For a second I thought we were all getting married to each other," Lily snorted, making Hermione and Alice stifle their giggles as Emmeline shot her friend a glare.

"Anyway!" she chirped, "We've got fattening food, weepy chick movies, awesome action movies, holy-shit-what-the-hell-was-that-noise horror movies, board games and booze."

"It's not even nine," Hermione blinked, "Why are we mentioning booze?"

"Hey, it's five o'clock somewhere," Emmeline shrugged before settling her hands on her hips, "And we are going to hang out and talk and just be in the presence of one another. Capisce?"

"Aye-aye, Cap'n Vance," Lily saluted with a smile. Emmeline beamed before diving for Lily's stomach, making the red head gasp for air and clutch the aching body part as Emmeline gave a victorious smirk. Alice rolled her eyes and sat on the arm of the chair Hermione's head had previously been resting on.

* * *

"I mean," Emmeline frowned in concentration at the board, each having a finger on the little white triangle, "Do you know how much it sucks being the only single one here? I mean, I love each of you, and I love James, Frank and Remus as if they were my fucking brothers – pardon my French – but I know you guys have to make time for them and make time for yourselves and I feel like the friendship thing we have going on is set on the back burner."

"The thing about the back burner," Hermione said after a few moments of silence, "Is that we always have to come back to it soon enough, or else it will capture our attention by catching on fire or kidnapping us from our warm beds to play Ouija boards while slowly getting drunker."

"Yeah, Hermione's right," Alice nodded, "We don't have enough time as it is, but we've always got to come back to the back burner. Just because we've got a pie in the oven or whatever, doesn't mean we're going to focus all of our attention on the pie all the time. Once the pie is done or it's cooling or whatever, we come back to the back burner and make sure it's not charred and smoking."

"All of the cooking metaphors are making me hungry," Lily announced, making the other three laugh, "But if I get up, you three will play with the board without me."

"We won't, promise," Emmeline swore, "On the count of three, we let go of the planchette. One…two…three." Each removed their fingers, staring at the white triangle on the board in total silence before erupting into laughs. Lily got up and went into the kitchen, which was in the house that Emmeline's parents left to her when they went on an Around-the-World retirement trip. Technically, it was for her and her sister, but Clarisse gave the four their much needed space.

Once Lily sat back down, she set down a bowl of popcorn by the board, the girls grabbing handfuls and munching instead of going back to whatever spirits awaited them.

"So, speaking of the pies," Emmeline said, "How're things going with your boys?"

"Meh," Lily shrugged, "James hasn't pranked me in three weeks. I've finally started speaking to him again."

Emmeline snorted with Alice, Hermione shaking her head with a small smile on her face, "Yeesh, people never change after Hogwarts."

"Shut it," Lily laughed before turning to Alice, "How's Frank then?"

Alice smiled, "Things are going good. I met his mother last weekend – foul woman, didn't seem to like me much, but she has a brilliant son, so I can't hate her too much."

"Aww, you big mush," Emmeline grinned before turning to Hermione, "So, how's our little snuggle bunnies?"

"What?" Hermione asked blankly, making the girls laugh.

"Sorry," Emmeline laughed, "First thing that popped into my head."

"We're fine," Hermione smiled, taking a sip of her soda.

"You had sex yet?" Emmeline asked blankly, making Hermione quickly set her drink down and cough and splutter, Alice thumping her lightly on the back as Lily laughed harder.

"_What?_" she asked once she could get past the soda.

"Well, Sirius said he was going to go jump on Remus one morning, but you were in his bed with him and your shirt was on the floor and – "

"I got hurt and Remus fixed me," Hermione answered lightly, although Lily stopped laughing, "He gave me one of his shirts and we stayed up talking until we fell asleep. I mean, we haven't even said _it_ yet – I don't know why we'd be doing that if we hadn't." Hermione blushed as Emmeline scrutinized her.

"You haven't even _said_ 'sex' yet?" she asked, making Hermione snort and thump her forehead on the coffee table, a smile on her face as she shook her head back and forth. "Wow – somebody's taking the whole Vestal virgin thing to the extreme."

"Hah," Lily grinned, "Remus. Rome."

"Haha," Emmeline caught on, "I made a _pun_."

Alice rolled her eyes, "The Vestal virgins couldn't get married, guys."

"Ooh," Lily hummed, "Sad pun."

"Why am I friends with you people?" Hermione murmured to herself, rubbing her eyes.

"Hermione, it doesn't matter whether you guys have sex or not, or even if you tell each other that you love them," Alice said.

"It doesn't?" she lifted her head and looked at her curiously.

Alice smiled and shook her head, "One look at you two and you can tell that you love each other very much."

"Oh good," Emmeline announced, "I thought I was the only one that saw it with them."

"Nah," Lily scoffed, "But I see it with Alice and Frank too."

"Hey," Emmeline frowned at her, "You and James too, don't exclude yourselves."

"Yeah, but _we_ say it," Lily stuck her tongue out.

"And what, Frank and I don't?" Alice pouted.

"We've run out of popcorn," Hermione said absently. Emmeline gasped and grabbed the bowl, staring into the bottom of it with wide eyes.

"We ate through the entire bowl in, like, twenty-five minutes," Emmeline said, "It's a freaking mixing bowl, guys." The four shared wide-eyed glances before erupting into laughter, clutching stomachs and trying to breathe.

* * *

**Because the girls hadn't been together in a few chapters and I felt bad, because – y'know – it's my fault they hadn't been hanging out together.**

**I used to do this with my Barbies and stuff too. I'd leave them all in the dollhouse living room or something when I went on vacation and stuff because I didn't want them to get lonely.**


	32. The Big Promise

**Gee, I wonder if you people will hate me for this chapter?**

**Only one way to find out!**

* * *

Alice's half-awake eyes skimmed over her friends. Lily was asleep on the chair, a pillow wrapped in her arms as her hair was ruffled up everywhere. Emmeline was on the couch with her, her feet threatening to go up her nose as she buried her face in her own pillow and snored. Hermione was on the floor in front of the fireplace, her head on a pillow and wrapped up in a blanket.

She gave a small smile and wiggled down with Emmeline, glad that her friends were there with her and safe.

* * *

Hermione awoke gasping for breath, her eyes searching around for what was obstructing her airways. Her throat was crying out in pain, and her hands automatically clawed at the hands at her throat. Her eyes found familiar grey eyes and dark brown hair, and her feet went into action too. Once she kicked Kyle off – and if it wasn't Kyle then he had a hell of a lot of explaining to do as to why his twin/clone was trying to kill her – she sucked in a quick breath of air and grabbed at the coffee table to try to hoist herself up. Unfortunately – or fortunately, however you want to look at it – she'd grabbed onto the Ouija board they hadn't touched after eating popcorn and it sailed onto the floor. This was enough noise to startle the other girls awake, making Emmeline and Alice jump up and grab their wands, as they were the ones who'd gotten Hermione and Lily up and there, and turned on Kyle, who threw up defensive shields that magic couldn't get through.

Lily dashed for Hermione and pulled her up, who grabbed a lamp off the end table and threw it at Kyle's head. As this was an act out of anger and fear, she hadn't thought that it would actually hit him and knock him out as it shattered.

The four girls stood panting, Hermione's hands at her throat as she stared wide-eyed at her friends.

"What the hell?" Emmeline gasped, her hands ripping through her hair as she stared at her friends, "What the hell just happened?"

"Kyle just tried to kill me," Hermione croaked.

"Oh my Merlin," Alice sighed, looking at her neck, which was already beginning to bruise.

"Is he dead?" Lily asked, "Oh my god, Hermione, did you kill him?"

"What?" Hermione crowed, rushing over and peering down at him. He was very much unconscious, and looked for all the world to be dead. She clasped her hands over her mouth and shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes. Alice wrapped her arms around her and hugged her.

"I doubt he's dead, Hermione," Alice tried to soothe her as images from the Battle flashed through her head.

"But would it be so bad?" Emmeline hummed, "I mean, the prick deserved it."

"I agree," Lily shrugged.

"Lily!" Alice gasped, "I expected more from you! Go call James, will you?"

Lily sighed, as if she were disappointed, and walked off into the kitchen to go call Grimmauld Place, which had recently had a phone installed, much to the chagrin of the painted Mrs. Black. Hermione shakily sat down on the couch and ran her hands through her hair, although Alice and Emmeline shared concerned glances over her.

* * *

Hermione curled up on the couch; book in her hands as she read. It'd been around a week since Kyle had snuck into Emmeline's house and attempted to kill her. It seemed that he'd been sent to the Order by the Death Eaters to try to gain information. As he didn't have the Dark Mark then, and somebody had trained him in Occlumency, he'd gotten in. His mission was to attempt to get closer to Hermione to gain her trust and get information before killing her. She'd brushed it off to others, Remus included, as nothing, but they were noticing that she seemed more pale and getting a distant look in her eyes. Remus was getting frustrated and worried about her, and didn't know what to do.

Somebody coughed lightly, alerting her of their entry into the deserted library. She'd only formally met Frank once, amid Alice's bubbly introductions before she flitted off to get something. They both gave each other awkward waves and smiles before slipping away. Now, he was standing in the doorway, capturing her attention.

"Hello," he said, hands clasped behind his back. "Mind if I sit?"

"Oh, not at all, go ahead," she said, Frank giving a smile before sitting down on the other end. It was silent for a few moments, making Hermione pretend to focus on her book as she wondered what he was doing here.

"Look, I know I've only met you once, and we haven't ever really spoke after that," Frank began, making her fold the corner of her page and shut her book. "But you've been through a great deal – only what I know and things I don't know about. I'd understand if you were having trouble with things like getting to sleep or finding the nerve to eat enough."

"I…haven't been getting enough, I know that," Hermione admitted, tucking a curl behind her ear, "But if I acknowledge that I'm terrified, I'm afraid I'll break down."

Frank gave a sympathetic smile, "You know, being scared of something is natural. Doing something even though you know you're afraid of it is brave. Dumbledore's told me that you're exceedingly brave in tasks that he's given you."

She sighed, frowning a little sadly at the coffee table, "The boys know what it is. And so I feel that if I don't do it, they'll feel the need to. And I don't want them getting hurt. Overprotective jerks."

"Yeah, those Marauders," Frank snorted, rolling his eyes and grinning, "You make friends with one of them, you make friends with all of them." At her smile and curious look, he explained. "It wasn't just the four of them right off the train, you know. It was James and Sirius, naturally, they hit it off really well, and Peter – because they liked having somebody look up to them. I was in second year, and Remus was kind of all alone. So I made it a point to make friends with him, because as a first year I was lonely too and I hated the feeling. Well, he started getting on cordial terms with the Marauders but not quite _a_ Marauder yet, and I was worried he'd let them push him around or whatever. Well, these three are discussing plans for a prank at dinner, right? And Remus is sitting with me, staring at them and I'm wondering what the hell this kid is doing before he grabs a roll out of the basket, does something to it, and lobs it right at James. He then acts like he didn't do anything and I'm still wondering what the hell is wrong with him when McGonagall walks by. She would've heard everything. So James turns over the roll and I see that something was written on it, and then I see James and Sirius grin over at him and nod and he's still pretending like he didn't do anything. I kind of figured after that, he'd be alright."

"I never knew that," she blinked.

He shrugged, "It's not because they don't want to tell you or anything – they don't really consider that the starting point of their friendship or anything. But I think so." He looked at her and arched an eyebrow at her. "How'd you become friends with them, by the way, if you don't mind my asking?"

"Well, you know about Remus being a werewolf and everything, right?" she questioned. He gave a nod. "Well, I was working on a potion that would allow werewolves to keep their heads during full moons. Remus was my unknowing volunteer. Once I told him what it did and that I was there to help him, we all kind of became friends. I set up Peter with a few girls I knew and I helped James get Lily. I once had this back-and-forth pranking thing going on with Sirius. During all of this, I guess Remus and I got closer and closer until we started dating. Now I don't know what I'd do without the barmy nutters, all four of them."

"Yeah, you kind of require a good sense of humor and patience with them," Frank chuckled as Hermione grinned at him. "Despite how little I talk to you, from what Alice and the others have told me, you seem very nice. I'm glad you're dating Remus."

She blinked a little before smiling at him, "Well, then I'm glad you're dating Alice."

"Ah-hah, about that," Frank turned a little red and lowered his voice, "Can you keep a secret?"

"Of course," she nodded.

"I'm actually going to ask her to marry me," he muttered, making Hermione grin at him. "Think she'll agree?"

"You're nuts if you'd think she'd say 'no,'" Hermione smiled as she stood. "Goodnight, Frank. And good luck."

"Thanks," he called out softly as she headed for her room. Well, it wouldn't be her room for much longer. The Order (and Dumbledore) were moving her to a secluded house so she'd be safer. Only a select few people would know where it was, and she'd been packing the Muggle way all day. Several people had asked why she didn't do it the magical way and be done with it quickly, but she'd shrugged and said that it had reminded her a little of her parents. They'd moved quite a bit when she was younger, and so her mother and father would make it a game to pack. You would get points if you found something that made you smile or laugh or feel any kind of strong emotion. Whoever had the most points got to pick the radio station in the car.

Hermione changed quickly and laid face down on her bed, staring at the dark wall ahead of her for a while before sitting up. She wanted to be done with all of this. All of the hiding, all of the Horcrux hunting, all of the scars and bruises and nightmares. She knew very little about the locket, or even if Regulus had stolen it yet or not – although she probably would've heard it by now if that was the case – or even exactly _where_ it was hidden. But she wanted the hardest out of the way so she could focus on the smaller things. She got up and grabbed parchment and a quill she hadn't packed away yet, quickly writing to Dumbledore and setting it aside to give it to the owl in the morning.

She took another look at her bed and frowned. She couldn't fall asleep, she knew that. She looked back towards the door and tiptoed out into the hall, carefully going up another flight of stairs to quietly open the door.

Remus was kneeling on the floor, going through the titles of books with a frown as he pulled them from their shelves. He looked as tired as she felt, although it seemed as though he'd made an attempt to go to sleep. Hermione quietly shut the door and tilted her head at him.

"Remus?" she asked quietly, making him rise up in surprise and hit his head on the shelf. He froze and cursed a little, holding his head as she worriedly walked over to him.

"I'm fine," he said, although it sounded as if he was reassuring himself. He stood, looking at her curiously, "Hey, you – what're you doing up?"

"I could ask the same of you," she gave a smile.

He shrugged, "Couldn't sleep."

She bit her lip, "Same."

"And for how long?" he questioned good-naturedly, although there was a worried look in his eyes.

"A week," she finally admitted with a sigh, sitting on the edge of his bed and looking at him tiredly. He gave her a half-smile, glad that she admitted it, and sat down next to her. She leaned into him, wrapping her arms around him as he did the same.

"Hermione," he said, "Can you please, please, please, please, _please_ promise me that you will try to not get hurt anymore? I understand that the Kyle thing wasn't your fault, but I worry about you so much. And if you do get hurt and if you do get scared or something, will you please come and see me?"

"I promise," she nodded, reaching up to kiss him. She bit the inside of her cheek as he bumped her cheek with his nose. "Would you – uhh – mind if I stayed the night? I promise that I'm not hurt before this time."

He grinned, pecking her temple, "I'd be perfectly fine with it." She smiled as he towed her down with him, reaching over her to turn off the light. He pecked her nose before they seemed to drift off to sleep.

She'd tell him later.

* * *

**This all came to me while I was lathering, rinsing and not-repeating, so I had to hurry and type it all up.**

**After about three hours, I'd say it was a valiant effort.**


	33. The Huge House

**Can I say that although I love writing these two and I love them together, I realize that – at this point in the story – their relationship is kind of rocky? Like, Hermione kind of goes and does her own thing and Remus is getting frustrated with her for not staying safe because ever since they got on the platform and he thought she was dead, that image has been haunting him and he can't stand to see it ever come true. But with Hermione, she's trying to get everything safe so she can rest easier knowing that there's nothing trying to get at everybody she cares about, including Remus. **

**It's like, okay, I understand this and I'm writing it like this because _have you ever seen a couple that was so perfect right off the bat?_ No, of course not, especially not with people who haven't dated anybody else before. Remus and Hermione have absolutely no idea what the hell they're doing right now, but I'm hoping to turn this around soon. Right now, I want fluff.**

**Oh, and I'm not saying this because somebody was mean about it or anything. I just felt like pointing it out because nobody else would. **

* * *

"Wow, how much space do they think I _need?_" Hermione asked with wide eyes as she stared around at the spacious house she'd been given, stairs going up to at least a third or fourth floor, a living room to their left, a library to the right, and a kitchen that connected onto the living room. She didn't even want to think about what all the other rooms could possibly be used for, or even what the Order had thought she would use them for.

Remus let out a low whistle, holding the box that held all of the shrunken down boxes as his eyebrows went up. He looked over at her, who still seemed incredibly surprised by the big empty house in the middle of the woods.

"I just – I just don't understand," Hermione shook her head as Remus set the box down and turned to her, shutting the front door with his foot.

"I don't understand how every single person besides me was too busy to help you today," Remus smiled, making her snort and roll her eyes with a grin.

"Yeah, that seemed strangely convenient for them," she smirked before pecking him on the lips, "Thank you though."

He gave a smile and nodded, already pulling out small boxes with his wand and setting them on the floor. He enlarged one just enough to read the handwriting on the side, tilting his head to the side and frowning.

Hermione watching him as he did this with the other boxes, frowning a little at how tired and worn out he seemed. She glanced at the other boxes and decided that they would still be there tomorrow and the day after that and would stay there until she decided to unpack them and transfigure them into furniture to fill up the house. They could definitely wait.

Remus blinked when she slipped up to him and kissed him, making him smile against her lips and put his wand behind his ear, cupping her face with his hands. When she pulled back and he arched an eyebrow with a smile, she was pleased to find that he didn't seem so tired then, mostly amused and curious as to why she'd chosen to kiss him randomly.

"Remus," she said, arms wrapping around his waist as she set her chin on his chest.

"Hermione," he mimicked, hands settling on the small of her back as he smiled a little bit wider.

"I would very much like to spend the day with you without boxes and various junk in the way," she offered, "You can bunk over and help me unpack tomorrow, if you want, but I will be hoping to trick a few of your near and dear friends into helping us then."

She got a grin out of him, one eyebrow going down a little bit and the other going up a smidge, his wand slipping down from his ear a little, "And what would we do if we didn't unpack, then? And where would I bunk over?"

She thought about this before pursing her lips, "Alright, we'd have to unpack a bed, that much I know."

"And eating?"

"And a table and chairs too, then."

"Could just dig out a mattress and sheets and see if they left food in the fridge," he hummed, running his hands up and down her back.

She grinned, pecking his nose, "Brilliant." He chuckled and turned away from her, kneeling down to check the names on the boxes before enlarging the one that had _BEDROOM_ marked on it. She lifted the mattress and bit her lip, thinking of where to put it as Remus dug out sheets and a couple of pillows. She shrugged and floated it up to the top, following it as Remus followed her. Once her head popped through the fourth floor, she discovered that it was all one big room with a slanted ceiling, a door near the staircase for the closet and one to the right of that for the bathroom. She dropped the mattress over by the circular window, stepping up and looking over the bar that guarded any sleepy beings from falling down the stairs and found Remus smiling up at her.

"What?" she questioned.

"You would pick the highest room in the house for your bedroom," he grinned as he walked up the steps, "Do you realize how heavy that box is going to be?"

"Do you realize we've got this handy dandy thing called 'magic'?" she teased back.

"Thank Merlin, too, or I'd be forced to hate you," he said, pecking her temple before handing her the sheets and pillows, "I'll go see if there's food in the fridge. If not, I'll take a really quick trip to the store and find stuff that's edible."

"Alright," she nodded, setting the pillows aside to put the sheets on the mattress. She looked at where Remus had been, saying aloud to nobody now as her eyes clouded over, "I love you."

* * *

**Fair warning – in (I dunno, what is it) one, two chapters, you guys are going to hate me. But the one after the one after that should be where you stop hating me, because then I'll try to get back to fluff for a bit.**

**Did that make sense? If not, whoops.**


	34. The ROMANce

**I am feeling the fluff today. I must write the fluff.**

**Also, on a side note, my Sim caught on fire yesterday. Yeah, I set her in Varg's tavern and looked up to watch _the Dark Knight Rises_ and look back down a second later and she's on freaking fire. _Nothing was even near her._ So she died and now there's a single dad with a teenage daughter that was her first kid with her first husband and then the daughter they had together who can't pick up the ashes because they're "in use" or something and so they're just permanently stuck by a foosball table in a bar. **

**_I was pissed._**

* * *

"What do you want?"

"Hm?" Remus asked, glancing at her in confusion, looking away from the curl that he was playing with. She was lying there, looking up at the ceiling, blankets wrapped around her as she stared at it, a serious expression on her face. He'd gotten take-out food instead and brought it back, eating it quickly and lying there on the mattress in the barren bedroom. They were like that for probably an hour or so before she asked that question, talking about a few other things that he'd already forgotten about. Namely about whether or not they were seriously going to just lie there all day. And the answer to that particular question was obviously yes.

"In life – like, if this war wasn't going on, what would you want to do, where would you want to live, where would you want to go – just what do you want when all of this is over?"

He was silent for a few moments, "Do you think it'll be over?"

"It's _got_ to be," she sighed, closing her eyes, "I need it to be."

Remus scooted closer to her and buried his face in her hair, holding her close to him as she sighed again and placed her hands on his arm. "Hermione."

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Nothing," he said, smiling now, "I like your name."

She smiled too, pulling away only to lay on her side and face him, "I like your name too."

He snorted, grabbing her hand and tracing the lines on her palm, "Yeah. Twin brother to Romulus, got killed by Romulus, nobody remembers him aside from getting killed by his brother. Whoop-de-do."

"Oh yeah? My name? Wife of Leontes, husband thought she was cheating on him, I suspect he killed her – never read the whole thing, by the way – and she comes back at the end from the dead by a statue."

Remus arched his eyebrows at her before smirking, "Fine. You win. I hope you stay away from pigeons."

She snorted before clamping her hands over her mouth in surprise, eyes wide as Remus blinked at her before he laughed, making her laugh as well.

Once they calmed down, Remus finally seemed to answer her question from earlier, "I don't know where I want to go or what I want to do once all of this is over. I just really want you to be there with me."

She smiled at him, "Good. Because you're stuck with me."

He frowned and stuck his tongue out at her, "I was trying to be cute and romantic and all of that other stuff normal girls like. Whatever – I know better now."

Hermione laughed again, burying her face in his chest, "I'm sorry – it was very cute and romantic and I'll try to appear normal from now on."

"No, you're not and no you won't," he teased, pulling her back to peck her nose, "But I was cute."

"And romantic," she piped up before humming, "Hah. Romantic. Roman. Hah. There was a pun."

He sighed and rolled his eyes, shaking his head at her, "Only you." She stuck her tongue out as a rebuttal, and they grew silent again. This time Remus closed his eyes, his breathing evening out, allowing Hermione to look over his features. Once he seemed asleep, she took her index finger and glided down the side of his nose, over a scar that cut into his eyebrow, accidentally skimming an eyelid. The path led down over his mouth, where he smiled and lazily opened his eyes. She smiled back, pecking his cheek as he wrapped his arms around her again.

"Remus?"

"Hmm?" he asked, nuzzling her.

"You should've gotten Rome."

He grinned, "Thanks. You shouldn't have been a statue."

She gave a small snort, "Thanks."

* * *

**It's lame but I wanted something and I have a _ton_ of jokes including Remus and anything Roman. For example (in a completely unrelated short):**

"Ugh," Emmeline groaned as Remus made purposeful noise in the kitchen, Hermione leaning against the table as Lily and Alice patted the hung over girl's back.

"You know, that can't be particularly healthy," Hermione noted with a grin, Remus chuckling before taking a drink.

Emmeline glared at her, "Yeah, well we can't _all_ be Vestal virgins, Hermione."

Remus snorted and quickly spat what he'd been drinking into the sink, making Lily and Alice laugh as it suddenly occurred to Emmeline.

"Hah – Remus, virgins," she mused as he whirled around to her.

"You couldn't have said _Vestal_?" he exclaimed, making the three girls crack up as Hermione shook her head at them.

**And the sad thing is _I have more._**


	35. The Locket

**Good news: I got my stupid Sim back! The one that caught on fire the other day? She has been resurrected and so far hasn't died again. But it's only been a few Sim days.**

**Also – somebody said they'd like it if I'd post all of my Remus/Rome jokes in a separate fic. I'd _love_ to, but I'd like to know if anybody else would like to read it as well. So…?**

**Oh, PS – this is the chapter you'll hate me for. I kind of hate myself as well, but it's in the _plot_. It's a fixed point in the story. Like, if the Doctor were here, this would be one of the things he wouldn't be allowed to fix no matter how much he wanted to because it was a fixed point. And then Donna would be like "but Vesuvius!" and the Doctor would be like "BUT NOTHIN' EARTH GIRL" and she'd be like "WHOA WHOA WHOA SPACE MAN SO YOU GET TO DECIDE NOW" and he'd be like "TARDIS, TIME LORD, YEAH" and she'd be like "DONNA, HUMAN, NO" and I'd be like "guys guys I need to get to the chapter now not that you aren't allowed to stay heck take me and my laptop with you I just really need to start writing this" and it'd just be one of those things.**

**(Oh my God somebody please tell me you understood what I just said)**

* * *

Dumbledore quirked an eyebrow at the young girl. Well, not technically a girl by any standards. Perhaps she wouldn't have even been classified as that when she'd first appeared there. He felt rather like a grandfather figure to her, not because he was old (although he was – he admitted it and was rather proud of the fact), but because he'd seen her grow up in a sense. He'd seen her from being very serious and alone and somewhat sad if you asked him, and slowly loosening up and getting closer and closer to the Marauders. He felt proud that she'd found friends (and even more) in them, although he had no real tie to her other than a mission she seemed headstrong about.

And this is what brought her to his office one night. She was dressed in very comfortable clothes and trainers, the peculiar bag she carried with her on her escapades with her. He had no doubt that she was ready to go on one of these escapades now, with one thing hindering her that brought her to him.

"Is there a cave that ever even _hinted_ a relation to Tom Riddle?" she asked, leaning against his desk with wide eyes. This apparently seemed very important information that she appeared to need right that second, as she was bouncing up and down on her toes and looking at him with the utmost urgency.

Dumbledore paused and thought before answering, "There is one that I know of, from his youth, but I suspect that it's very heavily guarded with magic."

Her eyes lit up and a smile was brought onto her face, "Where?"

"Now, Miss Granger," he said sternly as he stood and placed his hands on his papers, "I wouldn't advise going alone. I do not know what is there, and cannot allow you to go and blindly risk your safety."

"I'm not 'blindly' risking anything," she lied, although he didn't know it, "Harry went by himself too. Ended up perfectly fine. Just tell me, please, where is it?"

Dumbledore stared at her for a few moments before answering, "I do hope that you are sincere, Miss Granger. Very well – here." He'd stooped down to scribble it onto a piece of paper, handing it to her, "Although, I must ask you to contact me as soon as you possibly can. To know of your excursions and of the next Horcrux you intend to search for."

"Oh, I'm going after the Hufflepuff cup next," she answered before smiling and taking the paper away from him, "Thank you, sir. Have a nice night – I'll try to Owl you in the morning. Might even try to Floo over."

"Good – Minerva won't admit it, but she's missing you and your Gryffindor classmates terribly," he smiled as he sat down again.

"Really?" Hermione grinned, "Even the boys?"

"Especially them," he answered.

"Good-bye, sir," she nodded her head before slipping through the fire. He looked at where she'd stood and frowned, hiding his mouth against his intertwined hands. He glanced over at Fawkes, who was sleeping on his perch, and thought about contacting one of her friends to go with her. He thought better of it though, as she had said that Harry had gone by himself, and everything had been fine. As he trusted her word, he went back to his papers.

LINE

"Okay, gotta get to island, then drink the potion, grab the locket – God, I hope Regulus hasn't nabbed it yet – find a way off the island and back home before Inferi attack me. Good plan…mostly. Okay, it's got holes in it, but what plan _doesn't?_" Hermione spoke to herself as she sat in the boat, chewing on her lower lip as _Lumos_ casted its glow around the cave, light reflecting off of the dark water and drips coming from some unknown stalactite. So, maybe she hadn't thought it all the way through. This was bad, considering that she'd had a month after she'd finally moved in to think about it. To calm her nerves as she floated closer and closer to the small island – and believe me, her nerves needed to be calmed, as her throat seemed clogged and her stomach twisted – she found out the date. She was surprised that it was nearly Harry's birthday. This seemed to sadden her, as before she'd left she'd already gotten Harry a new Firebolt, to replace the one they'd – ahem – lost in the woods. She wondered if he would still get it, or if it would even matter. Perhaps, in some other dimension, he'd found it and would be sad that she wasn't there.

"I'm going to get him his first broom," Hermione hummed to herself as she stepped out of the boat, "Screw Sirius – he gets to be his godfather anyway. Now – how to drink the potion without stopping myself?" She frowned down at the basin, the locket's form shifting in the liquid as it moved. She wondered why it would move, as no forces were acting upon it, and perhaps it was just the potion. Not a good thought, that.

"Think of who you're doing this for," she murmured to herself, placing her hands on either side of the basin and clenching them tightly, "You're doing this for Harry, Ron, Ginny, Luna, Neville, Fred, George, all of the Weasleys back in the…future." She pursed her lips, finding it strange again that her past was this place's future. Well, not if she could help it. "Think of James, Sirius, Lily, Alice, Frank, Emmeline, Peter, Remus. You can do this. Do _not_ lose your nerve, Hermione. Don't even _think_ about it." And with that, she began to scoop out small portions of the potion with shaky hands and drink.

But by the time she was nearly to the bottom, she was clinging to it, as her knees seemed to have failed her. She'd forgotten the first half of names she'd been drinking the potion for – the stupid, stupid potion that made her throat burn and lungs ache and head and heart pound – and was struggling to remember if the first name of the second half was James or Peter. She could see figures moving in the sea out there, shadows beyond where the light touched them, and her brain was foggy and she felt as though she couldn't breathe. She wanted no more – absolutely no more of this.

She pulled herself up and looked into the basin, dipping a hand in to see if she could pull the locket out. She could've cried when the chain hooked around her finger and she pulled it up, light glinting off of the silver as she stared at it. It looked so familiar, being around her and her friends' necks at one point for many months. She dropped it into her bag and stood there for what were either a few minutes or several hours. She needed a way home now, as the Inferi would no doubt be after her. One quick glance to her right showed that the top of one's head was breaching the water. Perfect.

She dug into her bag, her fingers brushing blindly over things. She swiped at the same thing several times before she recognized it as what she wanted and pulled it out. The familiar, cool chain felt nice in her hands – perhaps she had a fever now, she didn't know.

"I need to get home," she murmured to it, running her thumb over the pendant, silently praying that this old form of magical transportation – before they had even dared trying to Apparate or with a timed Portkey – wondering if her mouth could form the words that would actually start the spell. Her eyes stared blankly ahead of her, seeing the Inferi getting closer and closer, but not registering that she should raise her wand and attack. It was as if she was just seeing them as part of the cave and not a threat. The not-quite-a-Portkey-but-we'll-call-it-one-anyway turned a little bit colder and she immediately plummeted to hardwood flooring, breathing heavily and letting her eyes wander over what she could see without forcing herself to move.

Oh, this was her house. Right? When had she moved in again? _Why_ had she moved? Hmm. She didn't know.

A door opened somewhere and somebody began to walk along the hardwood. She thought about getting up and reaching for her wand, lying a few inches away, but it seemed like too much effort. If this was her house – and, really, she had no idea if it was or not, but it seemed like a good guess – and they had gotten in, then surely they wouldn't hurt her. Wait, why would somebody hurt her? Huh. Another good question.

"Hermione?" That voice sounded familiar. Male, low, she had good feelings connected with it. Warm, fuzzy, good feeling – why did Rome and wolves come to mind?

"'Mm up," she mumbled, lifting her eyelids and reaching for her bag. The footsteps got closer before they suddenly stopped, and suddenly he was right next to her, picking her up in his arms as she stared blankly at him, both still on the floor, although Hermione felt like she was floating and everything else was rising up to touch her. Like she was the center and everything else had its own mind to guide her and touch her and press into her skin.

"Hermione, what happened to you?" he asked.

"Oh," she said, as she finally realized that this was Remus, "Umm. Huh."

"Are you alright?" he asked, standing and moving to some stairs. When had stairs gotten there?

"Wait, wait," she tried to reach behind him, somewhere towards the bag – maybe, she had no idea why she was reaching for it, "I got it."

"Got what?" he turned and saw what she was looking at, "A Horcrux? Hermione, what happened?"

"Potion. Cave. Inferi." She hummed, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her face into his chest. He led her up and up and up, but she only felt him and could only see him. He lowered her into something soft. He pressed his hands onto her face and bit his lip, looking at her worriedly.

"Hermione," he whispered earnestly, "Why would you go and do something like this? Didn't you know what would happen?"

"I dunno anymore," she answered honestly, as if he didn't keep saying it, she probably would've forgotten her own name by now. "I'm so tired. And cold. And hot."

"I don't know if you should sleep or not," he admitted, smoothing her hair back, "I don't know what's going on with you."

"Cool, we're on the same page," she mumbled, letting her eyelids shut.

"No, no, no, Hermione, please, stay with me," he pleaded.

"Mmkay," she opened her eyes again, a corner of her mouth twitching when she saw the amber eyes.

"I can't take you to Mungo's – you don't have a file," he muttered, probably to himself, "Pomfrey isn't an option. Do I need to get Dumbledore?"

"No!" she said loudly, startling him a little.

He quirked an eyebrow, "Why not?"

"I lied to him," she admitted quietly, "He'll be mad that I lied."

"Love, _I'm_ mad that you lied, but I'm more worried about you making the night or not," Remus said. She seemed to discover that his hands were on her shoulders.

He sent a Patronus to the older wizard, despite any protests that she made (half of which didn't make sense) and he was there in two minutes of receiving it. He looked over Hermione, who seemed ashamed of lying to him, and told him so multiple times. Dumbledore told her it was alright, that he forgave her, and turned back to Remus.

"Keep a very close eye on her until morning, if she isn't better by then, I'll get Pomfrey," he advised, "If she gets worse, contact me _immediately._" Remus nodded and he left, allowing him to turn his attention back onto his girlfriend. She'd lain down and was examining her fingertips curiously, as if the subject of her fingerprints was very new and extremely fascinating.

"Remus," she said as he sat on the edge, adjusting the blankets around her.

Wondering if she was ready to ask him something or just saying his name, he ventured out to say, "Yes?"

"Can you stay with me?" she asked, looking up from her fingertips to look at him. "I don't want to be alone."

He immediately crawled under the blankets with her and held her close, "I won't leave you. I promise."

"Remus," she murmured after a few more moments. Her words were slurring, and Remus prayed that it was because she was nearly asleep. "I love you."

He could've sworn his heart stopped, and he held her tighter and kissed her forehead, "I love you too, Hermione. So much."

"A lot," she added onto her statement. "_A lot_ a lot."

He nodded, watching as she slipped out of consciousness, but still held on to the hem of his shirt to keep him close.

He didn't sleep – not that he would want to, anyway. He stayed with her and made sure she was okay throughout the night. When it was the early hours of the morning and the sun was just beginning to come up, she seemed much healthier. Color had come back to her face, although she was still pale, and didn't seem to have a fever. He quietly slipped out of bed, put a charm on the blanket to alert him if her heart rate dropped or her fever spiked or something. He went downstairs and examined where he'd found her. Her wand was laying there (he picked it up), the bag was lying there (he picked it up), and he stepped on something before he stooped down to pick it up as well.

It seemed like forever ago. Before Horcruxes began and before they had even gotten out of Hogwarts, before Slughorn's ball. With midnight hugs for Christmas presents and chocolate frog card confetti and promises not to end up like the man on the card and a day of playing in the snow and talking and getting a small dose of revenge against Christina.

It was a silver crescent moon with a star clinging to it, the chain moderately long.

_"Hermione,_

_Happy Christmas_

_Love,_

_Remus"_

He headed back up the stairs, everything in his hands, although he stared at the necklace. He'd, honestly, forgotten all about it. Did she even wear it anymore? He looked over it, finding that there was a different clasp on it. Well, apparently she wore it so much that the previous clasp had broken.

When he got up to her room, he looked up and gave a smile when he found her sitting up.

"You _left_," she teased tiredly, somehow managing a smirk as she flopped back into the bed, "Thought I wouldn't notice. But I did."

"You seem better," he noted, putting the stuff on her dresser and lying down next to her. Color had definitely come back to her face, especially on her cheeks and lips.

She gave a hum, "I feel like I'm having a really bad bout of the flu." She turned to him and frowned, "Did I…say something last night?"

"You said a lot of things," he said offhandedly.

She snorted and rolled her eyes, "Anything of significance?"

"Yeah," he gave a smile, "You said you loved me."

"Oh, good," she sighed, hugging the pillow, "I meant to."

He reached forward and kissed her quickly on the lips, "Love you, too. I'll be right back."

She gave a groan, "Where are you going _now?_"

"To kill the stupid locket," he admitted before pausing and turning back to her, "Hey…why was the necklace on the floor when I found you?"

"I put this Medieval spell on it," she said, "Say where you want to go, think or say a few magic words, and you're there. It'll only work with me though. That's where they didn't like it – only one person, but not their friends."

"And why that necklace?" he tilted his head.

She gave a shrug, "Because I wear it everyday. Duh."

"Duh," he repeated with a snort, making his way back over to bend down and kiss her once more.

When he pulled back, she gave a curious smile, "What was that for?"

"Because I was very worried about you, and still am," he said, pecking her again, "I'll get over it and be mad though."

She gave a sheepish grin, "Sorry."

He rolled his eyes and grabbed the locket and the sword and waved as he went into another room to kill it.

Three down, three to go.

* * *

**Ring, diadem, locket. Three. Diary, cup, and Nagini. Three. Minus Harry (because he's not even born yet) makes six. Look at the math! Behold it!  
Also, in one chapter, I said offhandedly that Hermione killed the ring, then in the next Hermione was really injured and killed the ring again. **

**It was the One Ring to Rule Them All (from Lord of the Rings) the first time. (Sorry Hobbits. We'll give it back later.) **

**_(I don't even watch/read LoTR what am I doing I should shut up)_**

**Also, about the previously short chapters – I am tired and want to write so I compromise with myself and write short chapters and somehow my subconscious updates and my subconscious tells me conscious that I should just leave it there so I do.**

**I'm actually really tired right now and I can't wait until I'm out for break. I've only got to take the semester test for third hour, so I should be able to stay sane for an hour. **

**Please review, as this chapter has waited forever and ever to be written, and deserves love.**


	36. The Difference

**So apparently I'm losing my touch when it comes to guessing if you guys will be mad at me over chapters. In fact, most of you were like "that's it? What's the big deal?" over last chapter. Hurt my feelings. *sniff**sniff***

**Oh well, I'm a big girl, I'll get over it.**

**Also – the stuff in the cave was really thrown together quickly, so I got a _lot_ of stuff wrong there. Woops. That one's my fault. (Although everything's my fault. ._.)**

**PS – I'm sixteen! Woo!**

* * *

Hermione sucked in a breath as her muscles and bones protested any movement, whether she ordered it or it was involuntary, due to somebody sitting down by her side. She was seriously regretting her decision to go after the locket now, as Remus hummed and ran his hands through her hair, obviously now more mad than worried, now that he knew she was going to be okay.

"Sore?" he asked, amusement tinting his voice as Hermione winced.

"I was wrong, you were right," she announced, "I've said it. I was stupid, I was idiotic, I should've brought help, it's all my fault."

"Mmn-hmm," he hummed, pecking her temple and smoothing his hands down her arms.

"I'm so sorry," she muffled into her pillow before turning her head to see him. "I'm an awful human being and I have no idea why you're dating me."

He snorted, sitting up straight now and looking at her dully, "Because I love you, you barmy nut." He pecked her cheek, crossing his legs as she sat up on her knees, her eyes shut as she frowned at the pain. "Pomfrey gave me a potion for you to help get rid of the pain. But it's on the dresser." He grinned as she glared at him before he brought the bottle out from his pocket, "I'm not that mean."

"Thanks," she pecked his cheek, taking the vial from his hand and uncorking it, downing it quickly. While she waited for it to kick in, she sat by him and leaned into his side.

"Can I ask a few questions?" he asked.

"Sure," she muttered, rolling her free shoulder as he laid his head on top of hers.

"Why did you tell Frank why you wanted to kill all of the Horcruxes yourself and not me?"

She winced, "Because you'd argue with me."

"Hermione," he pulled away and frowned at her, "Of course I'd argue with you. Do you see what you've gotten yourself into? You – can't – do – it – _alone._" He grabbed her shoulders and looked into her eyes, "You're only one person, and you're one person I care very much about. And this is the last time, you know?"

"Figured," she hummed, leaning forward and pressing her forehead against his, "After this I guessed you'd lock me in this house or something and throw away a key."

"Hmm, good idea," he murmured against her hair, making her smile a little. "Honestly, I just can't seem to keep you still and safe. That'd be a good way to make that happen."

She pulled back and blew a razz at him, making him laugh and reach forward to kiss her, pulling her into his lap and holding her close. At least for right now, they were both alright.

* * *

**I wanted fluff again. But we'll hop back onto a plot soon enough.**

**Do I have to go to school soon? I don't want to. Oh, but the tablet my parents got me for my birthday is coming in tomorrow! I'm really excited, I might be able to make a cover for this and several other stories!**

**Have a happy new year, everyone!**


	37. The Duplicate Cup

**I'm really really tired and the flu is – of course – going around. Euugh.**

* * *

"Remus," Hermione hissed as he blinked innocently at her. They were sitting on the couch in the house the Order had given to Hermione, each reading separate books, but with Hermione's legs arched over his lap. He'd been absentmindedly moving his fingers up and down her legs, and as she'd been in shorts it was driving her insane, but he didn't seem to notice.

"What?" he asked curiously.

"You're driving me mad," she frowned.

He arched an eyebrow, "How?"

She soon realized that he didn't know he'd been doing it and grinned, rolling her eyes and moving her legs, "Nothing. Don't worry about it." He looked at her curiously for a moment more before shaking his head and going back to his book. He blinked when she moved and placed her head where her legs had previously been, bringing her book with her and making him smile down at her. She smiled when his fingers began to trace her face, going down her nose and across her eyelids and over her lips.

After he'd been doing this for a few minutes, he leaned down and pecked her forehead, grinning, "Driving you crazy yet?"

She smiled and sat up, moving to sit in his lap and lean into his chest, "Nope." He chuckled and wrapped an arm around her waist as she folded the corner of her page and set her book aside. She danced her fingers up his arm and slowly walked them up and down his chest, making him hide his smile in her hair. After a few minutes of this, he sighed and set his book aside, threading her hair through his fingers lightly and pulling her head back. She saw the smirk and gave a triumphant grin, especially when he gave up and placed his lips on the side of her neck.

"I win," she hummed, running her hands through his hair as he chuckled and hugged her closer.

* * *

"Alright, I've got her notes," Remus announced, walking into James's house and setting them on the dining room table.

"Ooh, she checked off the ones she's already killed, brilliant," Sirius smiled, shifting through the pieces of paper, "That helps loads."

James winced, "Guys, do you really think this is a good idea? I mean, Hermione barely let us go near the basilisk, what makes you think she'll – "

"She won't find out," Sirius scoffed.

"Oh, yeah, she'll just get to wherever it is, see it's missing and not immediately know," James frowned, "Maybe we should just get Hermione to let us help her. She obviously needs it."

"Of course, she does," Remus said, "But she won't let me. So, I'm helping behind her back."

"Moony, don't you think Hermione's got reasons why she won't let you help?" James questioned.

"Probably, but she won't tell me, and I can't figure them out," Remus frowned, "Look, James, this is hurting my girlfriend. I'm not about to stand aside and let it continue. Think – if it was Lily, what would you do?"

James froze before giving him a glare, "That was a low blow, Lupin."

Remus only grinned and handed him some of her notes, making him sigh and sit down at the table.

"So she's gotten a diadem, the locket, and the Gaunt ring," James hummed.

"What she's got left is some cup, a diary, and a snake, apparently," Remus muttered.

"Whoa, whoa, hello!" Sirius grinned, reading the note about the cup, "This says it's in my cousin's vault!"

"Yeah, and what?" James asked with a frown.

"She's still a Black, that's what!" he grinned, "So it's still in the Black family vault! And guess who just so happens to be named Sirius Black!"

"But can you still get in?" Remus blinked.

"Oh, definitely, I just never wanted anything more to do with them," Sirius said as he stood, reading over the note before rolling it up and stuffing it in his pocket, "Your little girly better appreciate what I'm doing, Lupin."

Remus snorted and rolled his eyes, standing with him and James.

* * *

"Hold up," James prompted, the note in his hand, making Sirius freeze from stretching for the cup. "It says here something about duplicating."

"Oh shit," Remus sighed, still holding onto the corner of the Invisibility Cloak, "Sirius, you better hope that's the cup Hermione means."

"Did she have a detailed drawing there?" he asked, still in that position, his hands nearly wrapped around a cup.

"No," James sighed, rubbing his eye, "We're so screwed, aren't we?"

"Well, what happens if I touch it?" Sirius asked.

"If it's the Horcrux, then nothing," Remus stated, "If it isn't, then it'll duplicate until we're crushed underneath the weight of a million cups."

"What a way to go," James snorted, "Choose carefully Padfoot."

"Is 'eenie meenie' a good idea?" he mused, making Remus groan and run his hands through his hair.

"Maybe I should've listened," he murmured to himself before shaking his head, sucking in a breath with Sirius and James as Sirius finally wrapped his hands around the cup.

* * *

Hermione gaped and promptly dropped the load of books she'd been carrying, her eyes wide before she pursed her lips and crossed her arms, glaring at the three. They had cuts and bruises along their body, either from nearly being crushed by hundreds upon thousands of cups, or from running away from guards. Nonetheless, they were injured and grinning sheepishly at her.

"Uhm," James began, "We need to borrow the fang. Please."

Hermione stayed eerily quiet before giving a very clipped, "Alright." She headed up the stairs, even her footsteps sounding silent.

Remus released a breath, nervously running his hands through his hair once more, biting the inside of his cheek and already trying to figure out his side of the argument. During this time, she came back down, the fang in hand. She wordlessly handed it to James before leaning against the banister casually. Remus arched an eyebrow at her behavior while James stabbed the cup that was in Sirius's hands.

It was whenever a rather miffed redhead came through the living room – where the fireplace was – and up to them that he caught on that she'd sent a Patronus to Lily.

"James Potter, I can't believe you!" she hissed as he opened his mouth, only to shut it again. "You could've gotten killed or sent into Azkaban!"

"Well, yeah, but – " he started.

"No, I don't want to hear about anything that could even possibly justify something that could've taken you away," Lily glared while Hermione looked a little bit smug, rocking back and forth against the banister. "Not right now, at least. My main point for now is – what the hell is that?" She pointed bewilderedly at the cup, which was smoking and producing a rather strange green foam.

"Oh, uhh," Sirius began, wincing between James, Remus and Hermione.

"I don't want to even know," Lily decided before turning back to James, "And now I want to find out what could've possibly made you think to do something so idiotic. But at home. Because I suspect those two are about to get yelled at as well, and I think you might be bleeding."

"Hmph," Sirius smirked when James blew air out of his nose and shrugged at them before leaving with his irritated girlfriend, "I don't have a girlfriend to yell at me."

"Hmm," Hermione finally spoke up, "No, so that's why I called Emmeline."

He gaped at her, his jaw seeming to have unhinged, "Why would you call _her_?"

"Because I so enjoy letting you know when you're being idiotic," Emmeline said, leaning against the railing at the top of the stairs, smiling happily. "Come on. I want the Order to hear what a Neanderthal you were."

Sirius glared at Hermione before sighing and following her back to the fireplace, tossing the cup to Remus before he left. When it was just them, Remus wouldn't meet her eye, instead watching as he unstuck and re-stick the fang into the gaping hole in the cup.

"I thought you knew why I wouldn't let you three come along," Hermione finally said.

"I lied," he admitted, still not meeting her gaze, "I only knew Frank had told you why and wasn't about to tell me. Something about proving you wrong, I think he said."

"I wouldn't let you come because I care very much about all of you," she said, making him look up now, "Especially you, Remus. If anything should happen to me, fine, I don't care. But I care about you."

"What do you think I've been feeling every single night I see you coming home, bleeding or burned or so incoherent that you can't even tell me your own name?" Remus frowned, "Hermione, some nights I'm afraid that you won't come home at all, not to mention that you _will _come home, but you won't make it through the night."

"I know," she said softly, "And that's why I'm changing tactics, so to speak. I'm asking Dumbledore and Mad-Eye and a few other Order members to help more now." She smirked and eyed his injuries, "But, now that you three are so adamant about fighting all sorts of traps and things, I suppose all four of us could – "

"No," he said quickly, making her smile, "No, no, that's fine. Honest, we can just stay home and that'll be perfectly alright with me." When she began to chuckle, he grinned a bit and sat on the third step from the bottom, setting the cup and fang down and stretching his back out. "D'you think you can patch me up? I can't reach half of these."

"Alright," she said, getting out her wand and moving to his face before catching sight of the grin a second too late, as he tugged her into his lap and held her tightly. "Oh, Remus!" He chuckled, moving his lips to her pulse point, gripping her to him. She gave a huff and a pout, "Stop that, I'm still a bit mad at you."

"What do you think I'm doing?" he murmured against her skin.

"You're trying to distract me, that's what you're doing," she muttered as he grinned, "And I won't have it. Nope. It won't wor – ooh." She gasped and gripped his shoulder, hissing through her teeth. "But biting might – no it won't!" She caught herself as he chuckled and grinned wider, pulling back to look up at her a bit.

"I am sorry though, Hermione," he said.

She sighed and pecked the side of his nose, "I know. I love you."

He smiled, "Love you too."

"Now," she smiled back, "D'you want me to fix these?"

"Yeah, thank you," he said, hugging her a little tighter around the waist as she set to the task.

* * *

**And now they won't really be going Horcrux hunting anymore.**

**…I won't say that you'll hate an approaching chapter. No I won't.**

**But you might mildly dislike what it may contain.**


	38. The Cat

It had been a few months since the boys had gone Horcrux hunting by themselves. During that time period, not so much happened, and we think they were rather glad for that fact. Although, Remus did finally move in with Hermione, and Sirius and Emmeline finally started to date, with many 'I told you so's coming from their friends.

But things were good, so far as Remus was concerned as he tugged his girlfriend deeper into his chest, making her make small noises and hug him tighter around the waist. He smiled a little, pressing his lips onto her forehead, allowing her to sleep a little bit longer. Since Hermione had given up the Horcrux hunting, she found it to be very boring in the large house, not even the books capturing her attention. Remus had some idea of what she was going through, although not a very good description. He knew she was worried about what would come later, but for the present she was very tired of being trapped. He'd thought about changing their appearances and going out again, but it was far too dangerous now. It seemed that the Death Eaters had caught on with the Horcrux hunt. He only hoped they did start looking for Hermione again.

"Good morning," Remus said when he felt Hermione huff and curl up even more against them.

"How can those two words ever be put in a sentence together?" she muttered, making him grin a little wider.

"And I see you've woke up on the right side of the bed," he teased, making her groan.

"I'm not awake. I'm still asleep. I refuse to acknowledge that it is another day in this house."

"I know," Remus said soothingly, pulling back a little to see that she was pouting, "It'll all be over soon though. And then you never have to be shut in a house against your will ever again. Won't that be nice?"

She smiled and shut her eyes again, "It'd be lovely. And you can say 'I told you so' and I can stick my tongue out at you."

He chuckled, knowing that would be exactly how it would go, and kissed her cheek, "Happily ever after, hmm?"

She grinned a little bit wider.

* * *

They didn't do much while inside the house. Remus mainly stayed to keep his girlfriend company, which he didn't mind in the slightest. But that was probably because he was free to come and go as he pleased. Hermione mostly cuddled up with Remus and talked with him instead of reading the books she'd read dozens of times over. She'd debated a few times about finding a TV, but had absolutely no idea what kind of shows were on in the seventies. She remembered vaguely some things that her mother had told her about the seventies when she was younger, but couldn't seem to remember all of them.

"Alright, I'm done," Hermione stated, sitting up on the counter and watched as Remus flipped through a book, either looking up something to cook or a potion to make her stop complaining. To her, it seemed iffy as to which one it was, and she could hardly blame him.

"Done with what?" he asked, glancing at her before going back to the book.

"Just…done," she decided, "I'm sick and tired of all of _this-_ " she waved her hand at the house, "- I just want to go outside and walk around and look like me and not have somebody attempt to kill me."

Remus straightened himself up and looked at her softly, patting her knee, "I know. And I'm sorry. I wish I could fix it for you."

She sighed, "No, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I've complained this entire time. I'm awful. Don't know how you put up with me."

He chuckled and stepped between her legs, leaning closer and pecking her cheek, "Because I love you, that's how."

She smiled back and put her forehead against his, "Love you too."

They stayed like that for a while until a silvery mist shot through the window, taking the form of a cat and puffing up its tail and arching its back. Remus and Hermione looked curiously at it before its mouth opened and McGonagall's voice came out, "We need your help. Hogwarts is under attack."

* * *

**This wasn't the chapter you'd mildly dislike. That's the next one.**


	39. The Battle of Hogwarts

Hermione's hands were cold and she was shaking. He wanted to help, but he couldn't. They had to keep pushing through to find McGonagall or Dumbledore or _somebody_ from the Order and find out exactly what was going on and what they really needed to do.

He didn't want to think how terribly familiar this all must've been for her. He knew it was at Hogwarts in her time, he knew that it involved many of the same people, and he knew how very much she hated any memory of it.

Hermione gripped his hand tighter, a very solemn expression on her face. He squeezed it a bit, shooting her a smile when she looked up. She managed to do the same and tuck into his side, grabbing his arm with her free hand to keep him close. Many people were going every direction, some running away from the fight, others going towards it, others cutting across to find someone else. He absently rubbed her hand with his thumb before he reached out and grabbed someone from nearly being thrown to the ground. When they popped up, he blinked at the hooked nose and greasy hair.

"Snape?" he questioned as the other blinked back at him.

He straightened his jacket and gave a curt nod, "Lupin. I suppose you realize we're on the same side then, or else you would've cursed me rather than help me." He glanced to Hermione before doing a double take. A small smile tugged at his lips, "Wise to fake her death. The Death Eaters were very adamant about hunting her."

"Were you spying on them?" Hermione questioned, still holding Remus's arm, the people moving around them.

"Yes, and I believe that has made me enemies, as now they know," he sighed before giving a 'what-can-you-do' shrug and giving another polite nod, "I do hope both of you make it out, in the end, as I did tolerate _you_." Remus didn't have to second-guess himself to decide that Snape still didn't really like James or Sirius.

"The same to you," Hermione told him before he could slip off.

He snorted, "That is highly improbable, but thank you anyway." And with that, he left.

"Hmm," Remus hummed, "Well, that was unexpected."

Hermione gave a light laugh before urging him on. They came to a stop at a corner, where McGonagall was wringing her hands and looking over the tops of the heads of the people.

"Professor," Remus said as they got closer, "What are we doing now?"

"They've given us a few moments to 'rally our troops,'" she snorted, rolling her eyes, "But I've gotten word from Mad-Eye that the final Horcrux has been destroyed, although it is under speculation whether Voldemort knows it or not, and I have no idea where Dumbledore has run off to. Whatever the case may be – " she stuck her hand out to him and Hermione " – it was an honor teaching both of you."

Remus blinked, much like Hermione, before he shook her hand and said it was an honor to be taught by her. Hermione moved to hug the woman instead, who blinked before smiling a little and patting her back before they parted, the older woman turning a corner to find more Order members.

"Remus," Hermione said, looking up at him, "I want to tell you that I really, really love you."

He blinked before hugging her tightly, burying his face in her hair near her ear, "Don't talk like you won't be able to tell me so afterwards." She gave a small hum before pulling back to peck his lips, moving to step back just in time for Sirius to skid to a stop next to them.

"Hey, I've found everyone else, come on," he said before leading them through the hallways that seemed very strange and foreign to them. They were grouped up with everyone else soon enough in the Room of Requirement. It was mainly Emmeline, Lily, Alice, James and Frank, as well as a few others. They looked up and gave small smiles at them before going back to their thoughts.

"Alright, look, we need a game plan," James said first, shaking his head to clear his mind.

"Take out the leaders," Hermione said, quickly snapping back into her role from ages ago.

"And who would that be?" Emmeline questioned.

"Greyback, Bellatrix, possibly Lucius," she squinted, trying to remember. "Dolohov, and those are all I can think of now."

"And those happen to be the worst people ever," Lily announced, "How exactly are we going to take them down?"

"Quite easily, I suspect," Alice smirked, smoothing her short hair back, "I doubt they've got many brains between them, if any at all." She looked up to Frank with a smile, before frowning at his strange look, "Frank?"

"Alice, I want to marry you," he announced, making the girl in question's eyes go wide and skin go pale, mouth popping open.

"Now?" she gaped.

"Sure, yes, absolutely," he nodded, making everyone else gape.

"Frank, we can't possibly – not _now_, at least," Lily spluttered.

"We don't even have a pastor – it wouldn't be valid," Emmeline said as Sirius winced when Frank looked pointedly.

"Actually," Sirius sighed and stepped forward, "I might've gotten ordained for weddings a while back."

"What?" everyone seemed to echo, Alice included, giving him blank stares.

"Don't ask," he waved it away before arching an eyebrow at the two, "Are we doing this or not?"

They all looked to Alice, who glanced over at Frank before sucking in a breath and grinning madly, nodding her head swiftly up and down. Frank beamed as Sirius tried to fight back a grin.

"Alright, let's make this quick," Sirius said, rolling back his sleeves, "Dearly beloved, we're gathered here today to kick some ass and see these two get hitched. Any objections to the second?"

"Nope," they chorused.

"Great!" he smiled, "Anyone got a ring?"

"Pfft, Sirius, of course not," James frowned.

"Oh, right," Sirius blinked before shaking his head, "Do you, Frank Longbottom – ooh, just realized, sorry 'bout the last name, Sweetie." At Frank's glare, he continued, "Do you, Frank, take Alice to be your – err, is it lawful? – lawfully wedded wife for like a fucking long time?"

"I do," he nodded as Hermione, Lily, James and Remus shot glares at him. Emmeline hid her face with her hands and shook her head back and forth.

"And do you, Alice, take Frank – "

"Of course!" she snorted.

"Well then I now pronounce you man and wife, now go ahead and smooch it out," he waved it along. This all would've been rib-crackingly funny if it wasn't in such a depressing setting.

"Well, come for a war, stay for a wedding," James muttered as Lily sighed and patted his shoulder.

"Alright, we better get moving," Sirius announced before giving grins and lightly punching James in the shoulder, as he was closest, "You better stick around to let me see you and Lily get married."

"You better stick around to see it," Lily said as she wrapped him up in a hug. When they pulled apart and Lily went over to James, Sirius turned to Remus and Hermione, who were still standing next to one another.

"Now I won't say the same thing because we all know it'll take you ages to get up the nerve, Moony," Sirius grinned teasingly at him, "But you better be here so I won't have to swoop in and take Hermione. She might be so depressed that she'd agree without knowing what she was agreeing to."

"Pardon?" Emmeline glared as Remus chuckled and hugged him, ruffling up his hair.

"You better stay too, so I can be all cheeky when you and Emmy tie the knot," he said, making him snort and try to punch him away. Hermione smiled and hugged Sirius and then Emmeline, then James and Lily at once, the same with Frank and Alice. As they moved to go and begin the battle, Remus stopped Hermione.

"Hey!" he called out, making her stop and look at him curiously, "Love you too."

She gave a smile before ducking out of the door.

* * *

Hermione quickly assessed her situation. She was roped up and currently lying on the ground, feet were surrounding her, and the terrible familiar sounds of a war going on around her. The man standing up above her had a grotesque face, many scars marring it, and the evil look in his eyes didn't help either. He had scraggly hair and canine teeth that seemed larger than normal, his eyes a pale yellow. She pursed her lips for a moment, arching an eyebrow as Greyback stooped down a little to her, placing a hand by her head for balance.

"Now we've got the brat's filthy little Mudblood mate," he said, the owners of the fence of feet cackling, a few giving amused, canine yelps. "Wonder how pretty he'll think she is when she's scarred beyond recognition?"

Hermione straightened a little and frowned up at him as he gave a low rumble in his throat and started to lunge before being promptly bowled over. And up popped Remus, who glared at him and the other werewolves that Greyback called his 'pack.'

"You touch my girlfriend, I'll kick your arse," he stated, him and the others unaware that Hermione was calmly and easily unwrapping herself from the rope.

"Yeah? Look around, Lupin," Greyback motioned, grinning despite the blood dripping out of the corner of his mouth, "You're just one spindly little kid. You'd need an army to fight us alone."

"I highly doubt he'd need more than me," Hermione stated before hexing him flat on his back, ducking and dodging with Remus and hexing the others. When they were counted out, Remus grinned brightly at her and she gave a smile back.

"I need to stop worrying about you," he chuckled, pecking her quickly on the lips to make her smile a little wider before they split off in different directions.

* * *

"Hey!" Sirius said brightly, grinning at Hermione as she jogged towards him and James, "How're you?"

"Oh, you know how it is," she said off-handedly, although he noticed a few more scars on her face that bled. "Need help?"

"Yeah, James got caught by a nasty slicing spell," Sirius stated as he looked worriedly down at his best friend, who gave a weak huff and frowned at them both.

"I'll be fine, you guys worry," he muttered as Hermione sat down on a chunk of the wall and began to work on him while Sirius guarded them. "Hermione, can you do me a favor?"

"Depends on what it is," she replied.

"If I don't make it, can you tell Lily all that you told me?" he asked, making her stop momentarily and stare wide-eyed at him. "Everything about her and me and Harry. Everything you know about Harry, I want her to know about it."

She sucked in a breath before releasing it shakily, "Tell you what. When we're at Harry's seventeenth birthday party, we'll tell them together. Alright?"

"Merlin, you're stubborn," he laughed before nodding, "Alright. I don't know if I can wait that long, though."

"You better," she chided before standing up and ruffling up his hair, offering her hand to help him stand. The three shared smiles at one another, ready to part once more, before a bolt of light shot out and hit Sirius square in the chest, making him drop to the ground.

"Sirius!" Hermione and James cried before turning their attention to the pale, thin woman with a mass of matted black hair. A grin popped out from underneath the curtain, a terrible look in her eyes as she stared right back at Hermione.

"I killed Sirius Black," she started softly before her singing got louder and louder, "I killed Sirius Black, I killed Sirius Black, I killed Sirius Black!"

"You horrid _bitch!_" Hermione shouted, wand aimed, but James had already shot the spell. Bellatrix promptly thumped to the ground, her face frozen in that demented smile.

"Padfoot!" James crowed, rushing to his friend's side, his own eyes wide in horror. "Sirius, Sirius!"

Hermione stooped down and looked down at his face. His eyes were shut, and he looked very much asleep, but that didn't seem right. She glanced at Bellatrix before standing and plucking her wand from her hands, taking a long shot and muttering "Prior Incantato." She gave a loud sigh of relief and headed back to James, showing him Bellatrix's wand.

"She shot a sleeping spell at him," she frowned, "Thought we would think him to be dead and bury him. I wonder how many they've hit like this."

James frowned and grabbed the wand from her hand, snapping it easily and throwing the pieces at the woman's body. He grabbed Sirius's arm and Hermione did the same, taking him down to the Great Hall, where they had set up a quick Infirmary for the wounded or dead. After explaining the situation to Madame Pomfrey, they started to head back out, but James stopped her.

"Thanks, Hermione," he said, "I would never have thought of that."

She gave a one shouldered shrug, "I've seen far too many people who were hit with the Killing Curse. Believe me, James, I can spot a fake."

He patted her shoulder and gave a soft smile, "I know. I'm just a little slow." He pecked her forehead before they split once more.

* * *

Hermione gave a low sound in the back of her throat, frowning at the pain that thrummed through her body. Merlin, she ached. The sound of a sigh was heard, and somebody started running their hands through her hair. After a length of time, she dared to open her eyes and blinked through the pain and up at Remus, who smiled wearily at her making her smile back.

"Hey, you," he said softly to her.

"Hey," she said weakly before sliding her arms around his neck and slipping slowly into his lap, getting off of the table that they'd set her on. "D'you know what happened?"

"You were hit by one of those sleeping curses," he told her, hugging her tightly, "I thought I lost you."

"I'm sorry," she murmured to him, kissing the side of his cheek, "At least this time it wasn't my fault."

He snorted and tried to frown at her, although he was grinning right along with her, "Hermione."

"Remus," she mimicked.

He shook his head, kissing her and pulling back, "I love you."

"I love you very, very much," she hummed, wrapping her arms tighter around him once more. She pulled back to look up at him, "So what happened?"

He sighed, running a hand through his hair, "A lot of stuff. But he started walking out towards us, and said that Dumbledore was dead. We didn't want to believe it, none of us, but he kept saying how our last hope was gone. Then McGonagall stood up and said that 'as long as we have somebody or something to fight for, we'll never run out of hope.' And then they came in here and started fighting – dunno why in here, probably the weirdest location we've been in yet – and a lot of the Death Eaters and us started fighting too. McGonagall finally killed him, and then in walks Dumbledore who's got all these leaves in his hair with his hands on his hips and he looked at McGonagall and said 'you couldn't have let me watch' and she went kind of red and looked about to yell at him but she didn't."

Hermione smiled at the fact that now it was over and sat back on the table, facing him as he set his chin in his hand, looking back up at her. "Who all is still…?"

He opened his mouth to answer when she was bowled over onto the table with a scream and a thump, looking around the red, brown and blonde hair before she suddenly realized that these were her very much alive friends and hugged them tightly.

"Oh Hermione, you're okay, we thought we were – "

"We were so scared that you were never going to wake up again and we – "

"I was so scared that you'd never ever ever ever come back ever and I panicked and blew up a statue and – "

"I was really really scared," Hermione whimpered, hugging them all tightly, so very glad that they were all okay. Remus watched on in amusement before looking up just in time to see a passing figure.

"Peter?" he asked curiously, wondering if this was indeed his friend, who had been so distant for so long.

Peter turned and looked over at him and blinked before giving a small smile and walking back over, "Hey."

"Hey," he repeated, "I didn't think you'd be here."

He shrugged and gave a small grin, "Can't let you lot have all the fun, hm?"

He chuckled back, "We haven't seen you in a while. Kind of afraid something had happened to you."

"Nah, we were just laying low," he shook his head.

"We?" he repeated.

He nodded and shrugged, as if half-guilty but grinning about it anyway, "Mindy and I."

"Oh," he nodded.

"Are James and Sirius…?" he started, looking rather worried.

"They're fine, I just have no idea where they are," he told him.

"Good, good," he muttered before smiling, "McGonagall might have a fit if something'd happened to them, even if she didn't want to admit it."

Remus chuckled and waved to him as he began to pass, "Good to see you. Good luck."

"You too," he nodded before heading back on his original way. Remus looked back over to the girls and blinked when he saw that four more had joined in, quickly recognizing Scarlett, Olivia, Alexis and Emmeline's sister. He gave a grin and looked up as James sat down at the table, facing him and looking very tired, but managing a smile anyway.

"Hey," he yawned before rubbing his eyes under his glasses, "I'm tired but I know I won't sleep."

"Hey," Sirius frowned as he walked up and sat at the bench by his feet, "At least you had the _choice_ of sleeping or not. Merlin, that would've been scary if Hermione hadn't caught it."

"Yeah, let's not talk about it," Emmeline muttered, the girls finally pulling apart from their worried hug to look at the boys. She shot Sirius a smile and reached forward to peck his cheek and ruffle up his hair, making him smile back as well.

"Hey, it's Remus!" Alexis pointed out, smiling and waving to him, "Haven't seen you in a bit! You okay?"

"I've seen better days," he shrugged.

She nodded and pat his head, "Well, it's nice to see you're alright." She looked up and had a sympathetic look on her face before standing and going to sit next to Elliot Wood, who looked up and blinked at her before giving her a small smile. Hermione shared a pointed look with Remus as Scarlett and Olivia shared confused glances.

"Well, I'm glad that that's all said and done with, and now we can get on with our lives and Hermione can walk around outside to her heart's content," Sirius said, standing and stretching, getting ready to head home and try to forget the whole ordeal when the lights cut out and a familiar voice floated through the air.

"_Very well done, defeating my biggest competitor,_" it said as Hermione and the Marauders froze and shared wide-eyed glances at one another, "_Now I can actually make some progress. I don't know quite how you've done it, little girl, but you've evaded me. Believe me, it will be a quickly righted mistake. You and every single woman on this country, continent, soon enough **planet** will be eradicated and held to the mercy of whatever deities each of you decide to believe in. Perhaps some rest, though, before you're murdered, as it'd be the most cordial thing to do. But let the name Helena Theresa Roy haunt your dreams as you pretend to be lulled into a sense of security. Tah!_"

It was silent for a few moments before Hermione looked over at Remus and finally announced, "I actually completely forgot all about her."

* * *

**Buh-bah-duh-duh-dah-dum-dah bum-bah-duh-duh-dah-_duh._**

**I'm tired, so I don't really know how good this chapter is right now. I might wake up and check it at school and cringe horribly. It depends.**

**But please review! I'd really appreciate it!**


	40. The Lack of Opinion

**Oh hey it wasn't as bad as I expected. **

**Continue.**

* * *

"Hermione, you need to go to sleep," Remus frowned, arms crossed at her.

After they'd attempted to calm down the remainder of those at Hogwarts with no such luck, they agreed to stay in Grimmauld Place until everything was sorted out. It was now crowded, as Scarlett, Olivia, Alexis, Elliot and Avery Wood, and even a few other people had showed up and said that they would help however they could. One of these people was Xeno Lovegood, who was surprisingly only three or so years younger than the Marauders, which shocked Hermione as he had seemed far older when they were in the nineties. There was also Fabian and Gideon Prewitt, two Aurors and – more importantly – Molly Weasley's brothers. They enjoyed talking to Hermione and trying to see what made her tick, as she was such a small package but had "kicked some major ass," according to Gideon with nods from his brother.

But Remus was worried again. Hermione was working extremely hard on trying to find out whom, exactly, Helena Theresa Roy was and how to stop her from 'eradicating every woman from the planet.' He knew, of course, that this was the devil woman who'd been after Hermione since day one, but it was hard to explain her motives. This was why they currently had a blackboard in a study on the lowest level, filled with different sets of handwriting and different sheets of paper that had been copied from books.

But Hermione shook her head, leaning against the arm of the chair and facing the blackboard, "No, I'm fine."

Remus sighed and stepped closer to her, "Hermione, you haven't slept in nearly a week."

"And neither have you," she quipped back, not taking her eyes off the board as she continued to frown at it.

"Yes, and that's why I'm attempting to get you to come to bed," he said dully, "I won't pretend I'm proud or anything, but I sleep better when you're there."

She gave a small smile and leaned against him, "I do too, but I want to figure this out. It's bugging me."

"Well, I'm sorry," he stated, stepping away from her reach, "But you don't really have an opinion now."

She blinked and turned to look at him and hissed when she was picked up off of the floor, wrapping her arms tightly around Remus's neck as he turned and headed for the stairs, and chuckling Avery watching them go.

"Oh, you're the worst boyfriend ever," she pouted at him childishly.

"And you're the worst liar ever," he grinned cheekily back at her.

She huffed and leaned into him, glaring when he opened the door and shut it easily, depositing her on the bed that used to be his when he had lived at Grimmauld Place. He shrugged and only grinned a little bit wider, swooping down to peck her head. "Goodnight. Love you."

She sighed a little and softened, "Love you too. I guess."

Remus chuckled and lay down next to her, both falling to sleep.

* * *

**It's short because I wanted it to be. So nyeh.**


	41. The Confusion at Two

Remus felt very warm and safe, slipping somewhere in between sleeping and awake. He had Hermione wrapped up in his arms so she couldn't slip out and go back to work, and also to make her fall asleep faster, as he knew she needed it. She was playing with a button on his shirt before she finally relaxed and fell asleep. It was like this for a while, and it was nice, up until –

"That's it!"

Remus opened his eyes and blinked in sleepy confusion as he watched Hermione slip out of bed and practically sprint out of the room. He got up and followed at a much more reasonable pace, watching curiously as she knocked on her friends' doors, effectively waking them up at – he groaned when he saw the clock – two in the morning.

"Hermione, what's wrong?" Alice asked in a yawn as she dashed down the last flight of stairs.

"It's so simple, so stupidly simple, it would've been overlooked!" Hermione said, grinning madly as she skipped the last few steps and headed to the study, yanking down around three or four books and checking the board.

"What is?" Sirius blinked as Remus stepped curiously towards her.

"I can't believe it, her name should've given it away," she said breathlessly.

"Hermione," James said, pinching the bridge of his nose, "You're not making any sense."

She gave a huff before going back to grinning madly, "Her name is Helena Theresa Roy." At their blank looks, she frowned a little bit and started bouncing as she explained, her hair madly bushy from sleep, "Helena Theresa Roy. Helena T. Roy. Helena Troy. _Helen of Troy!_"

"What?" Remus asked first, looking at her strangely.

Hermione blew a strand of her hair out of her face and frowned, "Think about it. She wants to get rid of the entire female race – impossible, but she seems to think it attainable. Helen of Troy had a fucking _war_ presumably about her – although, really, the Spartans just wanted Troy's money. The most beautiful woman on the planet, according to Aphrodite. She'd want men fighting over her, just like before."

"Hold up, hold up," Frank called out, "Are you saying that you think she's _the_ Helen of Troy, or trying to mimic her? Because, Hermione, the actual Helen of Troy is kind of – I dunno – _dead_."

"Mmn, about that," Hermione hummed, turning her attention back to the board, "I'm kind of originally from the nineties. Time travelling, and all of that."

Dead silence filled the room for all of ten seconds before everyone started talking at once.

"Hold on, hold on, _what?_" Emmeline shouted.

"That's – I just – I don't – " Alice gaped as Frank opened and shut his mouth for a few moments.

"You've cracked, she's absolutely gone bonkers," Fabian said as Gideon stared at Hermione for a while.

The only one who wasn't saying anything was Lily, who pursed her lips and tried to hide a smile. James noticed this and looked at her curiously.

"Aren't you going to freak out?" he asked.

She bit her lip before grinning sheepishly at him, Remus, Sirius and Hermione, who had turned back around to see her. "I kind of already knew."

"What?" they chorused, looking at her strangely before Hermione shook her head.

"We'll discuss that later," she decided, "But because of the time travelling thing, she could've come from any time and into mine."

"Hold on, if you are sane and telling the truth," Gideon spoke up, "_Why_ are you here?"

Hermione groaned and tilted her head back to the ceiling, "There was a war we'd just gone through. This woman came up to us and said she knew a foolproof way to go back in time and merge whoever went with her into the altered-timeline person, so that they knew both sides of the story."

"So you – you could leave?" Alice asked worriedly.

Hermione shook her head, "She killed my parents to keep me trapped here. As it would've been the altered Hermione, I am still here, but if I went to my original time, nobody would know who I was. Make sense?"

"No," they all frowned.

She chuckled, "Yeah, I have a hard time wrapping my head around it."

"But she can't be _the_ Helen of Troy," Remus got them back on track, stepping up next to his girlfriend and looking at the board, "Even if she did time-travel into your time, she'd still have to be incredibly old. She knows English, and enough about our time _and_ your time, and therefore she'd have to have spent a lot of time in either places, or at least heard of enough in a future."

"Yeah, that part I can't figure out," Hermione hummed before grinning, "But if I _am_ right, then I know how to get rid of her."

"Hermione, this woman is obviously incredibly insane," Sirius spoke up, tilting his head at her, "She's trying to get rid of the female population _and_ she killed your parents. Don't you think that maybe…I dunno – somebody else should try something? I mean, you've kind of been working yourself to death. Don't make it _literally_."

"Sirius, she killed my _parents_," she said, "Even if they hadn't even had me yet, they're still my parents and I still love them. I'm not about to let that foul woman do that to anyone else."

He sighed, rubbing his eyes as Remus put a hand on her shoulder and smiled down at her, "What do you have in mind?"

* * *

**I honestly had all of this already explained in my head_ ages ago _and then I finally get to this chapter and I'm just sitting here going "Potato? Potato." **

**Also, I did some research on Helen of Troy to make sure I got all of my facts straight, and I found some _very_ interesting things. You can go check it out yourself, but I'd appreciate if you'd wait and let me get the next chapter up before you do so, as it might spoil some things.**


	42. The Standard Confusion

**Wow, you guys understood last chapter? I mean – psht, of course. (I was really worried some people would be incredibly confused. Glad to see that wasn't the case.)**

* * *

"Alright, this seems to make some sense," Hermione murmured to herself, chewing on her thumbnail.

"How?" Emmeline questioned beside her, Sirius tilting his head at the board as well.

Hermione gave a shrug as a means of explanation and stood on the cushion of the couch, leaning a little and frowning at what they'd written. Everyone had gathered information about Helen, or Helena if it actually were the case. The sun had come up hours ago, and Xeno, Avery and Elliot had come, along with Scarlett, Olivia and Alexis, who were quickly explained everything, including Hermione being from another time. It took several minutes for the girls to come to grip with this last bit of information, but the boys quickly hopped to work.

Frank and Lily had gone to the kitchen to begin cooking while Fabian and Xeno dozed off, Gideon still flipping dully from page to page.

"Alright," Remus hummed, running a hand down his face and through his hair, which was already rumpled enough, "We need…answers. Where is she, does she have an army somehow, what – ?"

"Forget that for a minute," Emmeline began, advancing on Hermione, who grimaced and shrunk down on the couch, "You're – from – the – _nineties?_"

"Uhm," she tried, "Yeah."

"_What the hell, Lady?_" she practically yelled, Alice coming up to her side and patting her shoulder in an act of comfort, "We're – we're your friends, and you don't tell us? Why did they get to know and why didn't we?"

"Because I knew exactly what would happen to them and thought that I couldn't hurt any sort of future for them," Hermione stood and frowned back, "Pardon me if I thought you liked being an Auror."

Emmeline paused before grinning brightly, "I'm an Auror?"

"Well you _were_," she hummed, shutting a book and shelving it, "I don't know if you will be now. See, when I got here, I was determined not to hurt any timelines or anything aside from defeating Voldemort and his cronies, which would – yeah – throw off Neville's and Harry's…I think Ron's too. Anyway, once my parents were killed and my alternate universe version was never born, I guessed it was safe to finally start to have a life in this time and try to change things for the best earlier than they would've happened. Like getting Lily and James together, for example."

"Or going out with Moony," Sirius grinned, lightly punching his friend's arm as he tried to frown at him and failed.

"Right," Hermione smiled at him before turning to Emmeline and Alice, "Any more questions?"

"Why did Lily know?" Alice pouted as the redhead in question walked into the room with plates of breakfast on a tray in her hands.

"The better question is _how_ did Lily know?" Hermione countered, frowning at her friend as she sheepishly grinned.

"Well," she said slowly as she set the plates down, "I heard Sirius wake you up one night and I followed you down the staircase and you were telling the boys what would've happened to them in the future. I went back to bed before you ever came up. Sorry."

"Did – did you hear about Harry?" Hermione asked with a glance to James.

"Yes," she pursed her lips and put her hands on her hips, frowning between the two of them. "And if I'm not his mother I will be _very_ peeved, James Potter!"

James gave a very loud laugh, making Hermione chuckle back at her and nod. The two caught this and froze before big grins appeared on their faces.

"We are? I mean, we do? He's – he's ours?" Lily asked.

"Well, he was in my time," Hermione smiled back before Alice gave a tiny scream and hugged her.

"Ooh, I'm so glad she appeared here!" she bounced happily after the hug, "There's so much more we can know now!"

"_After_ we take care of Helen," Hermione reminded.

"Oh, right, her," Alice sighed as Emmeline rolled her eyes.

"Breakfast first," Fabian sighed as he sat up, grabbed a plate and a fork, and began to eat.

"Did you say something about a Ron?" Gideon asked as he handed out plates.

"Err, yeah," Hermione nodded.

He arched an eyebrow at her as Fabian looked up from his food. The brothers shared a glance before looking dubiously at her, Fabian lowering his plate of food.

"Molly and Arthur said they'd name their next boy 'Ronald' and their next girl 'Ginevra,'" Fabian said.

"Hmm," Hermione hummed lightly, grabbing a plate and taking a bite of eggs, "She'll like to be called 'Ginny,' by the way, and Fred and George are going to call him 'Ronnie-kins,' although he hates that, don't do that if you want on his good side. Ron comes before Ginny, by the way, forgot to mention, he's a year older. Oh, and she will be a massive tomboy, and she loves Quidditch, and she likes playing jokes with Fred and George." As they gaped at her, she walked off back to the couch and sat next to Remus, who smiled at her like everyone else. She finally noticed after a few moments before shrugging, "What?"

"Nothing," Remus chuckled before taking a bit of her eggs, making her stick her tongue out at him.

* * *

**Okay, so I'm still working on the Big Reveal chapter. Sorry about that. I honestly meant for it to be this chapter, but then I wanted a fun chapter before we went right back into the semi-depressing scenes.**

**PS - I nearly submitted a URL for a cookie recipe instead of this story. Whoops! (How mad would you guys have been?)**


	43. The Questions and Answers

**Okay, let me say this – I won't be done for quite some time. So don't get panicked and think it's going to be over. I even debated about splitting it into a sequel, but that's too much work and effort that I really don't want to do. **

* * *

Hermione paced the halls of Hogwarts. Well, she would've been pacing if she hadn't been hopping over pieces of rubble that the Battle had left. It was dark and quiet, and she could hear owls in the distance. She knew Remus didn't like this plan. She knew he hated it and all the possibilities it could take. But they did it anyway.

They knew Helena would've been keeping an extra close eye on Hermione, and wouldn't dare go near her if she had back up. So she went alone. Then her whole group of friends had protested, Remus saying that he had no idea how he put up with her, but would like to continue to do so. She'd argued with them and stated it was the only way, and that she had a foolproof plan. Which, she didn't.

Maybe that was a lie. She had a plan, it just didn't end out well. For her, at least. She'd be taken out at the same time she took out Helena. Simple in theory, but she really had no idea how to pull it off any other way. They'd put the Apparation wards back up once the war was over, and there was no way to get away fast enough without it.

"Alright, come on out," Hermione sounded as she paced somewhere along the seventh floor, "I want to talk. Hellooo? Anyone? Helena? Or do you respond better to Helen?"

"Finally, you figured it out," she said, making Hermione squeak and whirl around to find that she was standing there, looking smug as she leaned against a wall. Her blonde hair was pinned up in the back and framing her face in the front, wearing a long white dress with a cloak much like the one from ages ago.

"Took me a bit," she admitted, frowning at her, "How?"

"How what?" she said, moving closer, that same smug look on her face.

"How are you practically ageless, how did you learn to time travel, basically what happened?" she asked, pushing a piece of hair behind her ear, frowning.

Helen frowned, "Fine, if you _must_ know. I was married to Menelaus. Paris, the prince of Troy, was to judge between three goddesses on who was the most beautiful. It was between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. Aphrodite promised him the most beautiful mortal woman if he picked her. He did, and she promised him me. Paris came after Menelaus and I had fought and comforted me and asked me if I wanted to go back to Troy with him. I readily agreed, and the War broke out under the guise of getting me back. Really, Menelaus wanted Troy's wealth. After the Trojan War, Menelaus brought me back to Sparta. But I was confronted by Hera, the goddess of marriage, and was told that I had betrayed my husband and was condemned to suffer greatly for it. I was to remain this age while my loved ones aged and aged and died."

Hermione had gradually backed up during this story, as she had walked closer as she told it, and tilted her head curiously at her, "How does that explain you travelling through time?"

She gave a one-shouldered shrug, "I was the daughter of Zeus and Leda. I had magical powers that I only tapped into once my family had died. I mastered it and experimented and found that I could travel through time." She gave a bored sigh and walked even closer to Hermione, who continued to step back, "Are you done with the questions, little girl, so you can join mummy and daddy, or are you just buying time?"

"Why do you call me that?" Hermione frowned, glaring at her, "The 'little girl's and such. I understand that, towards me, they're meant to be demeaning, but there's something else. Also, why me? Why my time, and why me? There must've been something specific that brought you to me."

"Your name," she crossed her arms, "It was unusual."

"Many wizarding names are unusual, so why not Rodolphus or Xenophilius if you were looking for strange?" Hermione blinked before brightening and arching an eyebrow, "Didn't you have a daughter?"

"Quiet!" she barked before dropping her head and growing sadder, her blonde hair creating a curtain between her and Hermione, "Yes. I did. You share her name, but not the love I had for only her. She was what Menelaus and I fought about, for her future. She was the only thing on my mind that I would miss when I fled Sparta. I begged Paris countless of times to let us go back to Sparta and take her during the War, but we could not get out. She resented me afterwards, and I'd lost my little girl. My little Hermione." She raised her head slightly and glared at Hermione through her hair, "Such a filthy creature with her beautiful name. It's a tragedy. That's why I picked you, little Miss Granger, because I wanted to see you suffer for not living up to her name."

"Why do you want to eradicate every woman on the planet?" Hermione ignored her jab and took a few steps closer to her, "Surely you must understand that it's impossible."

"I can't have friends. Another curse placed upon me by the lovely Hera. I can have lovers and children, but no friends. Women would be the only friends I would have, so – buh-bye." She picked her smirk back up and raised her head completely, sauntering closer to Hermione, who didn't move.

"How do you plan on doing that?"

She sighed and rolled her eyes, "A Killing Curse that only follows specific chromosomes over sound waves. Tried it before, only with different modifications, and they called it the Black Plague. Can we get _on_ with your death _yet_?"

"But if you had children with all the men, then after a while they'd be at the low end of the gene pool. Plus, you'd have to give birth a _lot_."

"Not with _all_ the men, you stupid little twit," she rolled her eyes, "I will have daughters, and they may marry any daughters I will have, and have offspring, and so on and – urgh! Shut up so I can kill you!"

"Alright, alright, but first another question – that curse that Hera put on you…how did you survive all the wars over the centuries?"

"I hid."

"So, technically, you're still mortal, but with some limitations?"

"Yes," she sighed, tapping her fingers against her arm.

"Brilliant," Hermione smirked before grabbing her wand and aiming it at her feet, "Because I highly doubt you'll survive fire. Fiendfyre!" She hissed when flames erupted, making Helen scream and dash in the opposite direction as the flames spread, moving away and tripping over rubble and hitting her head.

Horror spread through her body as she fought to get up and keep her eyes open. She reached up and felt the back of her head as her vision started going black, looking at her palm and vaguely registering that there was blood there. Somebody was screaming, long and loud, and someone else was shouting "Hermione!", the voice sounding strangely familiar.

And with that, she slipped away.

* * *

**It'snotdoneit'snotdoneit'snotdoneit'snotdonedon'tpanicdon'tpanicdon'tpanic**


	44. The Awakening

**I just uploaded last chapter so I don't know who freaked out and who didn't. Also, I understood it was crap. Sorry. I'm tired. **

**Anyway, on with this one!**

* * *

Hermione hissed and froze, rigid against whatever surface she was placed upon. She really, really hurt. Like, really, everything seemed to ache. Once it started to subside a little, she slowly moved her fingers and toes. Something soft was underneath her fingers and over her toes. She wiggled both and found sheets underneath and a blanket above. She took several deep breaths, slowly letting her body relax and made small noises when a new pain started up somewhere. Once everything had settled down, she took another deep breath and opened her eyes, grimacing and squinting at the light before slowly raising her head up and frowning. White tiled floors, white wallpapered walls, white blanket, white sheets, white, white, white. She took a breath through her nose and sat up, not stopping to let the pain sink in this time and flinging the covers off as she swung her legs over the side, making faces as she hopped down and started for the door. She noticed that she was in white sweatpants and a white t-shirt with bare feet, and that her hair was probably a mess, but she didn't care.

Flinging the door open and dashing out into the hall, she promptly bumped into a chest and her arms were grabbed to steady her.

"Hermione," a familiar voice said, hugging her tightly so she couldn't pull away to look up. "You shouldn't be up."

She smirked and hugged him back, "Then why are you standing here hugging me, Mister Lupin?"

Remus pulled back to frown at her as she grinned cheekily at him, "I'm sorry if I thought you were dead and am glad to see otherwise. I'll try not to be so jubilant the next time it happens. By the way – this is the _fourth_ time, and I _don't_ like it."

She winced before smiling again, "I love you?"

He sighed and rolled his eyes, burying his face in her hair, mumbling to her as he gripped her closer to him, "I love you too, you barmy suicidal girl."

"'Mm not suicidal," she muttered against his chest.

"Your actions say otherwise," he teased, making her pull back to pout at him as he grinned before pecking her lips. Once that was done, he swooped down and picked her up, making her hiss and grip onto him tighter. "Come on. You're going back to bed."

She laid her head against his shoulder and smiled as she shut her eyes, "Alright."

"You're far more compliant this time," he said as he headed back into her room, settling her slowly on the bed before heading back to shut the door.

"I'm in a lot more pain this time," she admitted as she slowly curled up against a pillow.

"I'll believe that," he said, pulling up a chair beside her bed and sitting there next to her, "You know, we were terrified when we found you. Thought you were dead. And, y'know, despite the fact that it's happened four times, I can never get used to the feeling."

"I'm sorry," she said, reaching out a hand to move his hair away from his face. He smiled and leaned into her palm, shutting his eyes.

"I'm glad you're alright," he murmured.

"I'm glad you are," she said as he leaned forward and put his chin on the edge of her bed, smiling and pecking his forehead. "What happened to Helen?"

"She died, seems that your little fire trick did it," he told her, opening his eyes and grinning at her as she grabbed his hand and used it as a pillow, looking back at him. "You're about to be very, very famous, Hermione."

She wrinkled her nose and groaned, tugging the blanket over her head, "Nooo, don't want to!"

He laughed and tugged the blanket away to kiss her, nudging her jaw with his nose, "I love you though."

She hummed and smiled, "I love you too."

* * *

"Can you tell us how you escaped the fire?"

"Can you tell us how you've managed to travel in time?"

"Hermione, who are you wearing?"

Hermione stared wide-eyed at the swarm of people. There couldn't possibly be this many wizarding reporters, even if they counted from all around the world. But, there they were, standing on the steps of St. Mungo's, flashing pictures of her staring wide-eyed at them and gripping onto Remus's arm.

"Told you we should've Floo'd," he murmured into her ear, grinning when she shot him a frown.

"Alright, listen, as I'll only say this once, and if anyone bugs me further I'll hex them," Hermione announced, releasing her boyfriend's arm and settling her hands on her hips with a frown. "Helena transported me back with a promise that if anything changed, she would merge my memories with those of the alternate-Hermione. As she killed the parents of her in this time period, I was left stranded and therefore would live out my life here. I have no idea how she managed to do this, and really don't want to know. Anything left on the subject of Helena is left unknown or confidential. I don't know how I escaped the fire, and I am really pleased to find that things didn't go according to plan in that respect. And I don't know who I'm wearing, as it seems to be just a regular t-shirt and sweatpants, but nevertheless they are comfy. Any other questions before I demand to be left alone?"

A shaky hand rose up, making her nod politely to the young man, who smiled up at her.

"How are you feeling?" he asked politely, making her blink down at him before smiling back.

"I've got a killer headache and I really want to go home," she admitted, saying the last part to Remus, who nodded and gripped her hand to Apparate with her. She hissed and clung on to him, squeezing her eyes shut as he winced and held her up.

"I probably should've given you a warning," he said.

"Really?" she said, letting him help her up as she opened her eyes and looked around at the house the Order had given her. She and Remus hadn't been there for days, but she was still rather glad to be there. Lily, James, Sirius, Emmeline, Alice and Frank had seen her in the hospital and told her what was going on. They said they volunteered to help repair Hogwarts so that it would be intact for the incoming students, and Hermione agreed to help as well, all of them being scheduled to take care of the seventh floor. Remus's parents had stopped in to see her and make sure she was alright, as well as James's parents, and she was glad that they cared so much and was sorry for not keeping in contact with them during the whole thing, but they understood and smiled when she promised to talk to them more often.

"You alright?" Remus asked with a smile, making her nod back. "Alright, where do you want to be stationed?"

"I think I can make it upstairs," she said before frowning very seriously at the staircase, "I could've sworn we had less stairs."

Remus laughed and walked with her to the library, sitting on the edge of the coffee table as she sat on the couch. He set his chin in his hand and watched as she wrapped a blanket around herself and stared back at him, making him smile a little and arch an eyebrow back at her, "And what do you want?"

"You," she responded, "More specifically, you to lay on."

"So I'm your mattress now, am I?" he grinned.

"Well, you're far more than that, but to save time – yes, you're my mattress."

He grinned wider and sat down next to her, pulling her into his lap and lying down with her, playing with her hair as she hummed and settled into him. He pecked her head as she began to doze off, looking up at the ceiling as he thought. It seemed that everyday had been a new adventure with her and would probably continue to be that way. At least it wasn't dull, he decided as he dozed off as well.

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**Plus an alternate, sad chapter that would've been the end. So glad it's not though, as this one is depressing! PS – more chapters on the way, just FYI.**

**Sad Alternate:**

Hermione hissed and froze, rigid against whatever surface she was placed upon. She really, really hurt. Like, really, everything seemed to ache. Once it started to subside a little, she slowly moved her fingers and toes. Something soft was underneath her fingers and over her toes. She wiggled both and found sheets underneath and a blanket above. She took several deep breaths, slowly letting her body relax and made small noises when a new pain started up somewhere. Once everything had settled down, she took another deep breath and opened her eyes, grimacing and squinting at the light before slowly raising her head up and frowning. White tiled floors, white wallpapered walls, white blanket, white sheets, white, white, white. She took a breath through her nose and sat up, not stopping to let the pain sink in this time and flinging the covers off as she swung her legs over the side, making faces as she hopped down and started for the door. She noticed that she was in white sweatpants and a white t-shirt with bare feet, and that her hair was probably a mess, but she didn't care.

Flinging the door open and dashing out into the hall, she promptly bumped into a chest and her arms were grabbed to steady her.

"Hermione," a familiar voice said, hugging her tightly so she couldn't pull away to look up. "You shouldn't be up."

She pulled sharply away and stared wide-eyed at the familiar black hair and green eyes framed by circular glasses, a lightning bolt scar on his forehead. "Harry?"

He smiled back at her, "Hey, Hermione."

"What – how am I...?" she breathing fast now, her heart rate speeding up as well.

"Whenever Helen was killed, the spells were broken. Consequently, you were sent back to our time. Where nothing changed from what you knew."

"So – so that – no," she said before frowning and standing taller, "No, no way, no. No!"

"Hermione – I'm sorry. I know you got close to them and everything, but – "

"No, Harry! They can't be gone! There must be something we can do!"

"Hermione," he said softly as she began to break down, tears streaming down her face as she gripped her hair and backed up to the wall, sliding down it and sobbing even harder. He sat down next to her and held her tightly, rubbing her back and saying nothing as she cried harder and harder. "I'm so sorry."

"They can't be gone, Harry," she said pitifully, gripping his t-shirt and squeezing her eyes shut, "Not your parents, not Sirius, not Remus. Especially not Remus." She cried a little bit harder as he waited for this wave of tears to pass to speak. "They can't all be gone."

"C'mon," he said, standing and helping her up, "This might not help, but I feel like it could do you some good." He walked with her up several stairs and down what felt like thousands of hallways. He finally came to a door and opened it up, letting her walk in and blink at the wallpapered room and separate beds, an armchair in the corner holding a man and a rocking chair holding a woman. She walked closer and winced when she realized this was Alice and Frank.

"Alice?" she asked softly, tilting her head at the older woman. Her eyes refused to focus as they glanced over her briefly before they went right back to her hands, where she was playing with something. "Oh, Alice, I'm so – " she choked up a little, "I'm so sorry. Everything's all my fault. I'm so sorry, Alice, I'm so sorry."

Alice reached out and took her hand as Hermione cried; putting something there and giving her a small smile before she went right back into her own world. Hermione looked down at her hand and sat in the floor by Alice's chair to continue crying, crumpling up the Drooble's Best Blowing Gum wrapper as she cried into her knee.

"I'll never forget, Harry, and I'll never get over it," she said once they walked out of the Longbottom's room several hours later.

Harry gave her a sympathetic smile and nodded, "I understand. I'm sorry, Hermione. I know what you went through, and I understand how hard this will be now. I'm sorry that you lost him."

She winced and leaned into his side, ducking her head as they walked, "It was all my fault. He told me, and I – "

"It wasn't your fault," he said soothingly, wrapping an arm around her, "It wasn't your fault, Hermione."

"It feels like it," she whispered. And with that, she walked with Harry back to her room at St. Mungo's.

As it would turn out, Hermione would visit Alice and Frank every day since then, and would not be able to look at Teddy Lupin without wincing and feeling horribly sad or a little guilty, and would never be able to step foot into Grimmauld Place no matter how many changes were made to it, and would not be able to control her tears at Harry and Ginny's wedding. She wouldn't date, or marry, or have children, as you would suspect. She did research even more on the Trojan War and the Greek mythology, along with time travel – although Harry and the Weasleys didn't know about this last one. But there really is no way to end this properly, as we could talk about the endless days and nights Hermione spent alone until she died, but – really – for Hermione, it ended when she left the seventies. Because, even though she was stuck in the past, it had become her future so much that when she was brought back, she was lost.

**Aaaand that's why I'm glad it didn't end that way because that was is so freaking _sad._ Ugh. Makes me sad and I wrote it! **

**Reminder: New chapters are still coming up, it's not done yet!**


	45. The Parallel Room

**This'll be the last "chapter" chapter, but there will be other chapters that'll have snippets of their lives and blah-blah-blah. But before we get into it – I love you all and I want to thank you for sticking through until the end with me. This has been as much as an adventure for me as it has for you, and I really hope to see familiar pennames in the future. Really, if you just want to talk to me and hang out and stuff, PM me or something, we'll be buds, we can arrange that. I just don't want to lose you guys.**

**Alright. Okay. Let's hurry up before I start crying. My face scrunches up and gets red and it's not pretty.**

* * *

"If you don't stop _whistling_ I'm knocking you in the head with a broom!"

"But we're supposed to whistle while we work, Emmy!"

Everyone was busy at Hogwarts. Elves, professors, former students, the elderly, recent soldiers, every single person was helping in every single way they could to rebuild the castle. Aurors, however, were still busy rounding up former Death Eaters and weren't available to help.

Hermione chuckled over at her friends, watching in amusement as Emmeline glared at Alice, who only pouted back with her husband slowly taking the broom out of her hand and giving it over to Hermione, who grinned up at him. Lily, Sirius, James and Remus were working on the hallway of the seventh floor, building up the walls and sweeping and trying to make it look like it hadn't been through a war, while they were sweeping out a large empty room. Something in the back of Hermione's head told her something was familiar about it, but she couldn't quite remember what it could possibly be, and ignored it.

"Who told you that?" Emmeline asked, hands on her hips as she frowned at her friend.

"Hermione did," Alice said innocently, making Hermione grin sheepishly at her friend as she whirled her glare over onto her.

"Well, technically, Snow White did. I just carried the message," as her glare worsened, she crossed her and Emmeline's brooms in front of her face, "Hey, don't shoot the messenger." Emmeline snorted and rolled her eyes, shaking her head at Frank before all three froze and stared wide-eyed at Hermione, who blinked at them before finally catching on, as there were two presences on either side of her head.

"Such a hypocrite, Miss Granger!" a voice crowed, making her give a scream of surprise and fling the brooms down to whirl around and back away, covering her mouth in surprise as her eyes widened. Two identical red-heads were grinning happily at her, one wearing a Quidditch jersey and the other a t-shirt with fireworks and interlocking 'WWW's. "Why, when we informed you that your hair was green, you downright hexed us!" the other said with a grin.

Hermione gave another scream, but this time launched herself at them, wrapping her arms around their necks and bringing them into an impromptu group hug as happy tears rolled down her cheeks. "What? How are you - ?"

"Oy, don't I get one?" another voice exclaimed, making Hermione gasp and whirl around to beam at a redheaded girl, who was grinning brightly at her and already opening her arms up.

"Ginny!" Hermione tore away from Fred and George as Frank waved their friends in from the hall to stand there and gape with Alice and Emmeline. "Oh, Ginny, beautiful, temperamental Ginny!"

"Hey, I agree with beautiful, but temperamental?" she grinned, hugging her back, "Oh, bushy haired, brainy Hermione! Merlin, I missed you!"

"I missed you too! So much, all of you, I don't understa – "

"Oy, Granger, you need to give out about three hugs, pronto!"

Hermione pulled away before grinning at Seamus, Dean and Neville, who were grinning back at her and moving to wrap her up in a hug before she could move away from Ginny. She laughed as everyone turned their gapes onto Remus, as if he could find some answer or explanation, but all he could do was gape and watch as his girlfriend hugged her old friends.

"You know," a voice said by Hermione's ear, making her gasp and whirl around from the three boys to find a grinning Bill, Fleur tucked in by his side, "You should really thank me for saving you from _burning_ when your little Fiendfyre trick tricked you."

"You did that?" she arched an eyebrow with a grin.

"Oh please," Charlie snorted, rolling his eyes at Percy, who was cleaning his glasses, "He's been bragging about saving _the_ Hermione Granger ever since."

"I'm – I – confused," Sirius managed, looking over at his girlfriend to see that she was nodding along with him.

"Hermione," a dreamy voice announced as she was hugged from behind, making her smile though and pat the arms.

"Luna, missed you too," she smiled at the blonde before she was spun around and picked up, making her give a scream and blink before grinning brightly and hugging him tighter, "Ron!"

"Hermione!" he laughed back, squeezing her a little tighter, "So, heard you've been busy!"

She barked a dry laugh as he set her back down on her feet, "Oh, you have no idea."

Sirius stepped up and tapped her on the shoulder, smiling a little before getting back the worried frown, "Hey, Hermione, uhm – uh, what?"

"I don't know," she grinned back, "But I'm happy!"

"Well," Percy began, "While you've been here, we've kind of been floating around in this halfway point between the fixed and the non-fixed, like some sort of parallel." George and Fred exchanged glances and rolled their eyes as Ginny sighed and Charlie snored, Bill sharing a look with his wife as Ron grimaced. "The Room of Requirement was the only fixed point in both that we could get in and out of. It's how Bill saved you from the Fiendfyre."

"So you could stay?" Hermione asked excitedly.

"Sorry, Love," Fleur said soothingly, braiding her hair back, "We can't stay for too long, as we might run into ourselves."

"Oh," Hermione deflated before brightening again, "Hey, where's Harry?"

"Finally, been here ten minutes and she hasn't even noticed me," he said, making her look over and grin at him before running and hugging him tightly, nearly making him bend to hug her. He set his chin on the top of her head, hugging his best friend tightly before speaking. "God, we missed you."

"I missed you too," she muttered into his chest.

"It's been so boring," Fred complained as George sighed, "No little bookworms to torment, no witty bantering, no suggestions for pranks – but, of course, Miss Goody-Two-Shoes never helped us there." Hermione glared at them before Harry tugged her back into a hug, making them grin brightly at each other.

"I've been left with Phlegm for ages!" Ginny hissed to her, making her laugh and pull her into another hug with her and Harry. "Don't leave me like that ever again!"

"So, uhh, are we bending anything important or - ?" Neville asked, somewhat sheepishly looking over at the still-surprised Longbottoms.

Hermione pulled away from Harry only to grab his wrist, towing him over with Neville and grabbing his as well, leading them to her friends. "Neville, this is Alice and Frank Longbottom. Alice, Frank, this is going to be your son, Neville."

"Oh my Merlin!" Alice said, already bouncing and grinning brightly back at Neville as Frank blinked at him. "Oh, we have – he's our – can I hug you?" Neville nodded and accepted the hug, mouthing out a 'thank you' to Hermione as she walked along with a fidgeting Harry.

She pulled him to a stop in front of the remaining group, wrapping an arm around his shoulders as if in a sign of comfort, "James, Lily, this is Harry. He's been through a lot and never really met either of you. So he's a little nervous that you two will find something wrong about him and reject him, although we all know that this is all a big fat lie." Hermione edged slowly away, coming back around to stand next to Remus and shoot him a smile while bumping his hip with hers, although he was still blinking at Harry, just like everyone else.

"Uhm…err…hi," Harry grinned sheepishly as Lily slowly stepped closer to him.

"Oh my God," she said before grinning brightly, "He's got my eyes."

"He looks like James," Sirius hissed out, making Emmeline and Remus nod their heads vigorously.

"He's got my eyes!" Lily said excitedly, making Harry smile back at her.

"He looks like _James!_"

James chuckled and ran a hand through his hair, grinning brightly back at Harry, "Y'know, I never really did completely believe her in the beginning, but I guess…."

"Yeah, she's always right," Harry grinned back, "It's annoying, but we've gotten used to it."

Hermione smirked back before she felt something against her head, looking and smiling when she realized Remus had just pecked her head. Fred and Ginny caught this and blinked before glancing between each other, frowning a little.

"Is this everyone, or is there more?" Hermione asked, turning to Harry with a small smile.

"Oh, there's more," he grinned back.

She arched an eyebrow before she saw, her mouth popping open before she covered it back up and started to cry, Remus reaching forward to put a hand on her shoulder and ask what was wrong before she ran towards the two people.

"Mum, Dad!" she shouted, making Remus drop his hand and smile a little.

"Hermione, oh my sweet little girl," Hermione's mother said, hugging her tightly as her father wrapped his arms around both of them as Hermione cried and tried to get it under control. "Oh my God, you've been through so much."

"I'm so-oh sorry," Hermione hiccupped, "That she did that to you, I should've – "

"No, Sweetheart, that wasn't your fault," her father insisted, pecking his daughter's head, "None of it was your fault."

"I love you both, I've missed you both," she murmured, pulling away and wiping her eyes with a small smile back at them.

"So, Hermione, are you ready to come back home then?" Percy asked.

"What?" Hermione asked, staring wide-eyed at Percy.

"Well, yes, if we go through the doorway, it'll be in the parallel again," he stated, "That is, if you go with us."

"I – but she…" she tried processing this as Emmeline and Sirius watched as Remus winced and slowly slipped out of the room, making them wince at each other and wait a few moments to see what would happen.

"Well, yeah, but in the parallel it's got room for _you_-you, no alternates or anything," Seamus said before giving a beaming grin. "So, what'dya say?"

Fred and Ginny grimaced as Hermione stared blankly at them all, Alice, Frank, James and Lily finally realizing that this would mean losing their friend.

"I – I can't," Hermione announced, shaking her head, "I just – they're my friends too, and it'd be – I couldn't…."

Harry softened and hugged her lightly, "It's alright. We understand."

Hermione gave a watery laugh, "I wish I could just visit. Can I?" "No," she said with him, making her sigh and pull away before blinking and looking around. "Where'd he - ?"

"Hallway," Sirius answered, making her blink before walking out there and seeing him sitting against the wall, head against the stone and tilted towards the ceiling.

"Remus?" she asked, making him look up and give a small smile, "Are you alright?"

"Oh, yeah, fine," he lied as she sat down next to him, giving him a pointed look to make him sigh and roll his eyes. "I don't want you to go. In case you haven't noticed, I'm rather fond of you."

She smiled and leaned into his side after pecking his cheek, "You can't get rid of me that easily, you know?"

"But…they're your friends – and your parents," Remus blinked at her.

"Yes," she sighed, "But if I go, they'll be stuck in that weird parallel thing Percy droned about. If I stay here, they'll be able to actually live. And that's what I've worked for." She smiled and looked up at him as he began to play with her hair, "And besides, I'm really fond of you too. And I guess the others as well, but no quite as much as you."

He chuckled and pecked her forehead, helping her up and going back into the room with her before she took his arm and began to lead him, making him blink and try to stop when he realized she was leading him towards her parents.

"Mum, Dad, this is Remus," she said, smiling at him as they turned their attention on to them. "He's my boyfriend."

"Whoa-whoa – _what_?" George whispered before Ginny's wand was automatically pointed at his face, giving him a harsh glare as he grinned sheepishly at her. "Sorry. Came as a shock."

"Hermione, what are you - ?" Remus began before she cut him off.

"I met your parents, you're meeting mine," she smiled back before her mother smiled politely and extended her hand.

"Irene Granger, I'm so sorry you've had to keep her in line," she said as he shook it, making him chuckle as Hermione winced.

"She's a handful," he smiled.

"I remember when she was younger – "

"No, Mum," Hermione said with wide eyes.

"Oh, it was the cutest thing – "

"Oh, Mum, no," she gripped her hair before her father grinned and patted his wife's shoulders.

"Irene, you're embarrassing her," he stated before nodding politely to Remus, "Stephen Granger."

"So – Professor Lupin?" Dean asked, as he was the closest to Hermione and could whisper. He started laughing when she started to punch him, lightly but still stinging. "Oy, only joking! Ow, ow – okay, ow, that one hurt!"

"Sticks and stones can break your bones, but watch out for Hermione Granger," Seamus sang, grinning at her as she gave him a dull frown. Remus snorted, making her whirl around and pout at him as he grinned apologetically at her.

* * *

"D'you miss them?"

Hermione lazily opened her eyes to see that Remus was still playing with her hair, looking up from a strand to look at her face as she shifted slightly on the bed.

"Hmm," she hummed sleepily, "Yeah, and I guess I always will, because they were a big part of my life. But you are too, and so are James and Lily and everyone, and I think I might miss you more."

"Hah, should," he smiled lightly, "I am your boyfriend, after all." They were silent for a few more moments before he tilted his head at her, "Would your parents and friends have a problem with me?"

She snorted and looked at him curiously, "Why, should they?"

"No, no, I mean the whole 'werewolf' thing," he explained, "I know that between us we acknowledge it and it's just kind of no big deal, but with them…. I don't know, I guess they might not – "

"Remus," Hermione frowned, sitting up a little on her elbows, "You're important to me. My parents understand that and would work to get around that if they did have a problem with it, which is highly doubtful, as they are good people who can think for themselves. And if any of my friends – and now we're talking hypothetically here - didn't like you because of that, then they are not friends of mine."

Remus grinned and rose up on an arm to peck her lips, towing her down and into his chest and wrapping his arms around her. "I love you."

"I love you too, in case you couldn't tell," she smiled, settling against his chest and closing her eyes.

"Isn't it nice going to sleep not having the stress of somebody attempting to kill you on your shoulders?" he hummed dully, making Hermione snort and cover her mouth before laughing at him, making him grin a little back at her.

* * *

**And there goes the last 'pure-plot' chapter. And now the next few will be mainly fluff. Yaaay!**


	46. The Bouquet Toss

"You should go up there."

"I don't want to."

"Hermione, you kind of have to."

Hermione hummed and frowned a little, making Remus smile softly at her. They were seated at a rather decorated table, their chairs close enough together that he could have his arm draped around the back of her chair without it being awkward. He was in a suit and tie and she was wearing a particularly fancy dress with her hair held up and heels on, leaning close together to be heard over the other voices, although they were hardly loud, they just wanted an excuse.

"Hermione, you are kind of an important part in this wedding," Remus grinned, "Go."

Hermione snorted and frowned even more at him, "I am a bridesmaid – "

"Maid of honor," he corrected.

"There are three maids of honors, Remus, it hardly matters," she said, "Anyway, I'm not all that important."

He twisted around in his seat and started pointing at various things in the spacious room, "You did that – and that – and that – "

"Remus, I don't care about the bouquet toss!" she interrupted him, "It's rubbish, and all you get is bumped around and bruised."

Remus arched an eyebrow at her and gave a smile before leaning forward and pecking her cheek, leaning his forehead against hers afterwards, "Well, what if you caught it?"

"I'd have a bouquet of flowers," she said pointedly, although red did rise to her cheeks. It was nearly a year after the Battle, and people were still trying to get settled into the new way of life of not having to worry or hide. In fact, the Auror's department at the Ministry were downright bored, and Fabian and Gideon had told Hermione this one night with glares, as if it were all her fault. Hermione was enjoying being able to go outside and walk around once more, and would probably like it a lot more if she didn't have to dodge paparazzi. Although, the attention was dying down a lot more, as they hadn't managed to get too many pictures of her, and she was impatiently waiting for the day she would be able to take a simple walk without ducking down alleys and jumping people's fences.

"Hermione!" Lily crowed, "Get over here!"

"I don't want to!" she yelled back after pulling away from Remus. Remus shrugged back at her as the redhead sighed and rolled her eyes.

"She won't come over here, Emmeline," Lily stated, making the bride grin a little bit before giving a nod.

"Alright, ready for the bouquet toss?" she asked the small group of women, holding up the bushel of flowers above her head. They clapped and shouted that they were ready, although all were previously informed of what was to happen. Emmeline glanced at Hermione to make sure she wasn't watching, although Remus gave her a small grin and a thumbs up, before getting out her wand and having the bouquet quickly float up, over and onto Hermione's lap, making her give a surprised gasp and look over at Emmeline with wide eyes. "I want to be your bridesmaid!"

Hermione blushed a bright red and quickly gave the bouquet to Remus, covering her face with her hands as everyone else clapped for her. Remus chuckled and kissed the side of her head, giving a happy grin to Emmeline, Lily and Alice. Frank shot him a grin and a thumbs-up, while Sirius and James high-fived each other.

* * *

"So, you still think the bouquet toss is stupid?" Remus asked, still holding the bouquet she'd gotten from the wedding, as she'd refused to pick it up or even look at it afterwards. It wasn't as if they were ugly, as they were white roses and had a charm on them to make them last, and normally she'd be glad to have them if it were not for the _way_ she'd gotten them. Remus set them on the nearby shelf, stepping closer to her with his hands in his pockets, watching her as she looked over her appearance in the mirror to figure out where to start on dismantling the hairdo so she could flop into bed, as she hardly wanted bobby pins poking her all throughout the night.

"It is incredibly stupid," she said, not noticing that he was coming up behind her. "I think it's silly that a bushel of flowers will predict who gets married next."

"What if it wasn't silly?" he asked, still smiling a little.

"It is," she said, releasing the majority of her bangs and having them spiral down.

"But if it weren't?"

Something was off about his voice this time. She frowned a little before checking the reflection, not finding him this time and turning around to see that he was on one knee, elbow propped up on the other and chin in his hand, grinning up at her as her eyes suddenly got wider.

"I'm going to do it," he said in a threatening tone of voice, dropping his arm into his pocket, arching an eyebrow at her with a grin, "Ready?"

She put her hand over her mouth and stepped a little bit away from the mirror.

"Hermione Jean Granger, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I've thought I'd lost you five times in a relatively short time span, and every single time it hurt, and I don't want that to happen because I never asked you this question. So – ready now?" He grinned a little bit wider as she put her other hand over her mouth as well. "Hermione, will you marry me?"

She was silent for a few moments, staring at him and the ring before she dropped her hands, narrowed her eyes, and said, "_Shit._ Shit shit shit shit shit."

Remus only grinned wider, "That's not a proper answer."

"You planned the bouquet!" she accused, pointing at him as he stood and practically beamed at her. "You and – oh, you got everyone in on it!"

He chuckled and nodded, stepping closer to her and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Oh, I hate you, I hate you!" she laughed, burying her face in his chest before pulling back and kissing him, "Yes, I'll marry you."

"I love you too," he chuckled, holding her tighter and grinning with her.

* * *

**Awww. I'm not done! There's more chapters! I'll let you know when I will be done though!**


	47. The Offspring

"Ouch! Little – ugh! Lily, how did you stand being pregnant?" Hermione asked moodily as Lily gave her a grin and patted her arm, holding a small gurgling little boy in her arms.

"It's only because you're so close to your due date, Hermione," Lily promised, "Once you have the baby, you'll be so glad you had it."

"Yeah," Emmeline said, curling in around her daughter and smiling at her friends, "It gets a lot better. We promise."

"I am on your team, Hermione," Alice huffed, pouting at her son as he made faces up at her, "Being pregnant _sucks_."

She snorted and grinned at her, "Thanks for the positive reinforcement, Alice."

"Any time," she grinned back.

* * *

"Mummy! Wake up!"

"_Will_, go back to _sleep_," she groaned, covering her head with the pillow.

He sighed loudly, flopping onto his parents' bed as Remus chuckled and wearily opened his eyes at his pouting son. He'd gotten his hair, which Hermione and Will were both thankful for, as neither wanted to attempt to brush through that frustration every day. But he had gotten Hermione's eyes, which had made Hermione pout, as she rather liked Remus's eyes, but he didn't care. At three, he was a bundle of energy, his little brother only one had watching him bounce around curiously, already with little brown curls that made Hermione groan and thunk her head against something heavy.

"What is it, Will?" Remus asked.

"Christmas!" he said excitedly, making him and Hermione share a glance before Remus shook his head and sat up, pulling him into his chest.

"Nope, sorry bud, Christmas got cancelled," he stated.

"What?" he asked, pulling back and looking at him incredulously.

"Yeah, it was all over the news last night when you went to bed. Santa couldn't make it, almost all of the reindeer were sick," Hermione said, laying her head on Remus's chest as their son gaped between them before huffing.

"Well then who ate the cookies?" he asked loudly, making them laugh and hug him.

"Go brush your teeth and head downstairs – do _not_ open any presents though!" Hermione said as he lit up and bounced off the bed, singing carols to himself as she flopped back onto her husband's chest. "Merlin help us when Julius realizes what Christmas is."

"Merlin help us when he starts walking," he chuckled, watching as she sat up and stretched a little before tugging her back into his chest, making her laugh a little. "Hey, I'm not done with you."

She smiled and kissed him, making him grin a little wider when she pulled away and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, "Come on, or else he'll open all of his presents, ours and Julius's."

Remus sighed and allowed her to lead him out of bed, stepping in to Julius's room to pick up the sleeping boy and head downstairs with him, sitting next to Hermione as they watched Will circle the tree before pulling one out and bounding over to them, setting it in Remus's lap with a nearly unreadable 'Julius' scribbled across it. Hermione smiled and grabbed her youngest as he started to wake up, blinking curiously at the box that his father was holding out in front of him. He took it in his hands and yanked at the paper, getting a grin whenever it started to rip, pulling it apart and blinking at the new picture book.

"Does he like it?" Will asked rather worriedly as Julius opened it up and stared down at it before grinning wider and patting the pages.

"I think so," Hermione smiled before pecking Will's forehead, "Go open your presents, we're going to try to head over to James and Lily's in a few hours, alright?"

"Okay!" he said excitedly, going back to the tree as Hermione set Julius in a playpen.

She smiled when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist, Remus's chin resting on her shoulder before he pecked her neck.

"Love you," he murmured to her, making her lean back against him and peck his cheek.

"Love you too," she smiled before blinking when his arms left and something cool settled against her neck. He gave a grin before turning to Will and sitting down with him to help him sort through presents as she looked down curiously.

She gave a laugh and grinned over at her husband when she saw that it was a silver crescent moon with a star on the end, much like the one she'd had ages ago and had lost during the War. He smiled back before getting the breath knocked out of him when Will exuberantly thanked him for a present.

Hermione rolled her eyes but smiled anyway, turning to Julius and shaking her head a little, "Oh, but I love you three all the same."

Julius gave a toothless grin up at her as she smiled and leaned down to peck his forehead.

* * *

**Obviously Will's first name is William and then there's Julius, which is obviously sort of after Julius Caesar – I say 'sort of' because they really don't want their kid to get stabbed or anything. (I felt like I needed them to have a kid with a Rome-ish name. Julius was the first to pop into my mind.)**


	48. The Children

"Professor Lupin, your usual troublemakers again," Filch sneered, ushering in the three boys with the hilt of his broom.

"So I see," Hermione murmured, frowning at Harry, Will, and Julius, seeing that Neville and Ron were quickly scampering away under the security of the Invisibility Cloak once she'd glanced at them. She sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose, "Thank you, Filch. I'll have a word with them. Maybe this time it'll knock some sense into them."

"Highly doubtful," he sniffed before lurking away, shutting the door behind him. Hermione waited for a few moments before glaring at the three that had already taken seats.

"What was it this time?" she asked, standing from behind her desk and looking down at her sons and "god-son." Harry and Will had been heartbroken when Will had been Sorted into Ravenclaw instead of Gryffindor like Harry had, and was even more miffed when Gemini Black had gotten Sorted into Gryffindor too, and beyond annoyed when his little brother was sent to the lion's den as well.

Gemini was a rather proud young girl, and found that Harry, Will and Julius - when he'd arrived, at least - were rather annoying some days, but often found herself trying to stifle giggles at them as they walked into the Gryffindor common room with bright green goo stuck all over them and grinning madly.

Harry still looked like James, and Hermione was glad to see that the scar was missing every time she looked, and was amused to see that he was much more outgoing this time around. Will had gotten the need for glasses, just like his friend, although his were more rectangular than round like Harry's, and he was constantly pushing them up. His hair was brown and was about the same as Remus's, and so far he was short and skinny. Julius, however, was another matter, his hair gaining Hermione's curl and his eyes looking much like Remus's, much to Hermione's excitement, as she loved her husband's eyes and was quite happy to have the gene pass down to at least one more generation.

The three boys then began talking at once, making Hermione strain to catch "Prefect's bathroom," "it's everywhere," "we didn't know it would do _that,_ Mum, honest." Hermione held up her hand and the babble quickly stopped, the three slumping in their seats.

"Honestly, I can't believe you three! I mean, it's bad enough I have to deal with Fred and George, but my own _kids_? Guys, I'm a _professor_, and if I can't reign in my own kids, how will they take me seriously? _Don't even, Harry, I know the joke, I'm about ready to hit your father for teaching it to you._ I mean, I can't even believe half of the stuff you three come up with and drag Neville and Ron into! Last week, you even got Gemini in trouble! And Merlin help you there! I just – ooh, you're so much like your fathers I can't stand it!" Hermione caught her blunder too late and looked in wide-eyed horror at the excited gleam in their eyes. "No, no, no – I, I didn't – no!"

"Problem, Professor Lupin?" James teased as he, Sirius and Remus walked in, Remus holding a folder of papers that he'd graded. It was a strange arrangement, both of the Lupins teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts, but Dumbledore was quite happy to pull strings and have them both there. Remus still got angry letters from parents every now and again, but mainly he'd sigh and crumple them up before trying to make it into his kids' breakfasts in the morning. So far, he'd made it five times, much to the amusement of Julius and the embarrassment of Will.

"_You!_ You three!" Hermione said, pointing mainly at James as he blinked down at her finger. "You just _had_ to go and be troublemakers, didn't you? And you just _had_ to go and – and have children and teach them!"

Sirius brightened and turned to the boys, "Did you do the thing in the Prefect's bathroom?"

As they nodded, James grinned and offered his hand to Harry, "Alright, high-fi – I mean…" He stalled and saw Hermione's glare before putting on a fake one himself, "Harry James Potter! That's a terrible thing to do! You should be ashamed of yourself!" But as Hermione rolled her eyes, Harry and James only grinned at one another.

"See, this is nice, having the good kid," Sirius smiled, rocking a little on his heels, "I don't get yelled at."

"Oh, I'll find something to yell at you for," Hermione frowned at him.

"Boys, don't you know that when you leave, _I've_ got to try to calm her down?" Remus asked them, looking at them pleadingly, "Merlin, I need to be paid extra for that if this is going to be a regular occurrence."

"It won't be, Dad, honest," Will said, although he was grinning and Julius was chuckling a little.

"Will, when you say 'honest,' you usually mean the exact opposite," Hermione frowned, making the Marauders chuckle at her as he flushed a little. She sighed and waved them out of her classroom, "Go. Detention on Saturday with Hagrid."

"Aw, but Mum!" Julius started before Harry and Will gave him meaningful looks. "Saturday is great! Yeah, fine, great, love detention, best thing ever." He grimaced as Harry and Will quickly towed him out of his seat, gave the four adults sheepish grins, and yanked him out of the classroom.

"I pity McGonagall for putting up with you four," Hermione frowned at them as they chuckled.

"Oh, come on, I wasn't that bad, and I'm still not," Remus said before holding out the folder, "I graded the fourth years' homework. You know you hate grading them."

"They don't know how to use commas," she frowned, taking the folder from him before arching an eyebrow as he grinned at her.

"Still love me?" he questioned.

She gave a dramatic sigh, "I suppose so." He chuckled and pecked her temple, rolling his eyes when James and Sirius pretended to gag.

"_Children_," Hermione hissed, glaring at them a little before squeaking when Remus tried to tickle her, holding up the folders as either a shield or weapon. Remus only grinned a little bit wider at her.

* * *

"We need to grade stuff."

"I don't want to."

"What was that you said before James and Sirius left? Responsibility or something?"

"Ugh, you and your stupid memory."

Remus chuckled and held on to her tighter, quite content to have her stay in his lap and lean against him in a futile attempt to sleep there. She sighed and tilted her face to him, smiling a little when she saw that his eyes were closed.

"Remus?"

"Hmm?" he hummed, keeping his eyes shut before smiling a little when she began to peck his neck.

"You should've gotten Rome," she murmured, making him grin and open his eyes, pecking her jawline.

"Thanks," he said, "You shouldn't have been a statue."

She gave a small snort, but was grinning back anyway before kissing him, "Thanks."

* * *

**I think about one or two more chapters to go. Eww. That's weird. I feel like I'm on chapter three or something. Not forty-eight.**


	49. The Birthday Party

**I'm going to split this into two parts, alright? (Because I'm weird and I think ending it on the fiftieth chapter would be pretty nifty.) (Also, I use words like 'nifty.') **

* * *

"Oy, get off! I'm not a mat or anything!"

Will laughed loudly and only ruffled up his little brother's hair from his position, making him growl and fidget to get out of his hold. Well, his and Harry's hold. He couldn't very well kick them that way, and they'd poked him in the ribs too many times for him to ignore it calmly.

"Boys, don't kill him!" Gemini yelled frowning down at the three as they looked up, Julius thanking her as Harry and Will frowned. "Hermione will murder you."

"Hey, I'd be her last kid – what makes you think she'd kill me?" Will asked, standing and towering over the girl. She had long black hair and brown eyes, people often telling her and Harry that they could pass for brother and sister, making them sigh and roll their eyes and shake their heads at each other.

She frowned up at him as Julius managed to roll over onto his back and kick Harry rather lightly, as it was his birthday after all, and managed to get on top of him and make dramatic punches while Harry laughed.

"Hey! Don't hurt each other!" Lily warned, frowning at her son as Hermione rolled her eyes and shook her head at her kids, smiling a little when Lily sighed. "Of course, they had to be boys. I don't think girls ever did that."

"If they had, I would've remembered it," Sirius grinned, making Emmeline swat at him with a glare. He chuckled and pecked the top of her head, "You know I'm joking, right?"

"Oh, you better be," she said, grinning at him as he walked off.

"Seventeen, I can't believe it," Lily shook her head, "Seems like yesterday he was trying to take out our cat with that blasted broom. By the way, thanks again, _Hermione._"

Hermione grinned back at her, "If I hadn't, it would've been Sirius. You do realize that, don't you?"

"Yeah," she sighed when Alice finally sat down next to her friends.

"At least my kid behaves well. At least," Alice grinned over to Hermione, "When we're around."

"Neville is actually very outgoing," Hermione said proudly, "Last year he told a Slytherin to shove it when he was picking on a first year."

"Hermione!" Lily said.

"What? I was proud, and if he hadn't I might've thought about doing the same!" she announced.

"Doing the same as what?" James asked, sitting down next to his wife.

"Telling a student to shove it," Alice grinned cheekily at her friend as she elbowed her lightly.

"Oy, I would've put it far more eloquently than that, thank you," she said.

"And added more fancy big words, too," James grinned, his fingers playing with a ribbon.

She kicked him lightly under the table, making him frown at her before flinging the ribbon at her.

"I feel old," Emmeline announced with a pout, "I mean, Harry and Neville are seventeen, Will and Gemini are sixteen and soon to be seventeen, Julius did his O.W.L.s, and everyone's growing up far too fast. I mean, if they did and I looked the same, I'd be fine. I found five grey hairs the other day. Five! In one day!"

"Please, all of my grey hairs come from your children," Hermione said, glancing at her greyed brown hair before shrugging, "I wouldn't worry about it Emmeline. We all had them rather early, and besides – " Hermione got cut off by a rather loud bang, making them whirl around and see that the boys and Gemini had wide eyes and 'oh shit' looks.

"We can't leave you alone for five minutes, can we?" Emmeline asked, making them grin sheepishly before scattering, leaving Gemini standing and looking around curiously before running off in the direction Julius had gone.

"So…" James began, looking up at Hermione, "Are we going to tell them?"

She looked around at them, "Do you think…?"

"It should be alright, Hermione," Alice said, rubbing her hand, "Perhaps a little strange, and they may be a little doubtful, but it should be alright."

"Alright," she nodded, "Once everyone else has gone. Let's give them a bit of normal before we drop the bombshell."

* * *

***high pitched screaming because we're getting closer to the end and I don't want it to***


	50. The End

Remus looked across the small space separating him and his sleeping wife. They had told the kids – including the Weasleys – that Hermione was originally supposed to be part of their timeline, rather than their parents'. They told the whole story of it, from start to finish, and the kids were left dumbstruck. Julius, though, happily stated that he was quite glad that his mother had stayed with his father and thus had him and his older brother. It took a bit for them to recover from shock, but they all slowly nodded and accepted it. Harry, obviously, was shocked that those things had happened to him in the past, and was quite glad that Hermione had gone back and stopped them. Gemini, taking after her father, was furious that the fourth original Marauder had betrayed his friends in the beginning timeline, and would've gone after the traitor herself if he had still existed. Will slowly accepted it with a bit of coaxing from his brother, Ron, the twins and Ginny looking curiously at Hermione.

"_Why today though?_" Harry had asked curiously.

Hermione had grinned and smiled at him, "_During the Battle, your father was talking about me telling the truth to your mother about how they had gotten married and had you, because he was being dramatic and thought he was going to die. I swore to him that we would tell both your mother and you on your seventeenth birthday, because I wasn't about to let him die._" Lily had glared at James, who had then glared at Hermione and stated that if she hadn't brought it up, Lily never would've known, and why she couldn't at least have made it twenty years, he'd never know.

Hermione opened her eyes and sleepily smiled at her husband, scooting a little closer to him, "Hey."

He smiled back, "Hey."

"What're you thinking about?" she asked softly, draping an arm across his side.

"You," he stated truthfully, resting his forehead against hers and smiling when she flashed a grin in the darkness, running his thumb over her cheek.

She gave a small smile and pecked his lips, humming and scooting in closer to his chest, "That was very sweet. I quite like you."

Remus arched an eyebrow down at her, grinning a little bit wider, "Oh?"

"Mm-hm," she sighed, listening to the steady beat of his heart, closing her eyes and feeling quite content. "It's a bit more than simply 'like,' actually, come to think of it."

"Oh, good, I was worried," he murmured, burying his nose into her hair and grinning.

"You always worry," she pointed out, giving a small squeak when Remus prodded her in the stomach. "Well, you do. I'm going to write a book about you and it's going to be practically step by step instructions on how werewolves worry. Or, rather, how _you_ worry. And it'll be a bestseller too."

Remus snorted and rolled her onto her back, pinning her to the mattress and looking down at her dully, arching an eyebrow as she squirmed a little. "Oh hush, quit spreading your lies."

"I'll spread my lies all I want," she teased before sticking her tongue out at him.

"You're childish," he grinned down at her.

"You love me," she grinned back.

He sighed and lowered himself down to her, nuzzling her neck and playing with her hair, "Yes, I do. Very much." He pecked her jaw and smiled against her skin when she played with his hair. He groaned and frowned into her skin, making her blink curiously at her husband before he gave a loud sigh, "I'm going to hate tomorrow night. I don't see why I can't just stay in bed with you like this."

"For one, I sincerely hope it's not _exactly_ like this, as I think you've pinned my arm in a weird angle," she said before he shifted and allowed her to move her appendage, bringing it around and rubbing a small circle into his back. "For another, it means you can spend all of the day _after_ tomorrow in bed with me like this."

"Kids going to James's?" he muffled, knowing that the boys always felt like they made too much noise after the full moon and would immediately feel guilty about any footsteps they made. Also, they quite liked hanging out with Harry, so that was probably most of the reason.

"Yup," she said, grinning when she felt him smile before lifting his head and sighing.

"Fine," he pouted at her as she chuckled at him, "But I hate being a werewolf."

"I know you do, love," she muttered, pecking his cheek before kissing him properly, "I love you."

"I love you too," he said, finally settling down and sleeping, this time leaving Hermione awake to think.

She was obviously very glad that she'd stayed, don't get her wrong, she loved her kids and friends and obviously Remus very much. But ever since she'd been confronted by her friends in the Room of Requirement, she couldn't help but wonder what had happened to them. She'd steered clear of the room whenever she was in Hogwarts, not wanting to know if it was empty or full.

She mentally shook her head and pressed her ear to Remus's chest, smiling when she heard his heart and closed her eyes to get back to sleep as her sleeping husband wrapped an arm around her.

* * *

Harry couldn't help but smile. It was strange, seeing himself grow up, but he couldn't deny that it was nice. He knew that Ginny, Ron and his other friends thought so too. It was rather unfair, though, that he couldn't have had this all along, but it was better later than never.

Hermione was a brilliant teacher. She even rivaled Remus, and seeing them work together was practically the best way to guarantee good results. Hermione was a good friend to the Marauders and their wives, and even stopped and said hello to Peter whenever she passed by his and his wife's shop in Diagon Alley. She would work hard and it seemed that only her friends and husband could ever distract her from it, and this was often and marked by many laughs.

Hermione was a brilliant friend and person in general, Harry decided as he watched his friend finally wake up with the bushy hair, Remus laughing and picking through it as she frowned up at her husband. Who else would go back in time just to try to make sure you had a good childhood? Who else would go back in time to try to stop a war that you really wanted no part in? Who else would succeed?

Hermione Granger – Lupin, sorry, he still forgot – was brilliant. And he was glad that everyone knew it. He was glad that she was still in his new life, and she was glad that even though _he_ didn't even exist anymore, she still worried about him.

Yes, Hermione was brilliant. Hermione was special. And Hermione was definitely loved.

She wouldn't have changed a thing.

* * *

**Ow, ow, owowow – _ow_. I just – I'm upset. I can't – I don't want to leave you guys. You're all my favorites. This was one of my favorite stories to write and now it's done and I just…I'm getting emotional. This is monumental. _Fifty chapters._ Wow. How did I do that? **

**Anyway, guys, I'm so glad you guys stuck with me and stuck with the story and I just want to tell you that I love you all so very very much, even if you've never reviewed. I love you for taking your time to make it this far and just sticking through with me. I love you all very much.**

**You are brilliant. You are special. And you are definitely loved. Especially to me.**

**Love,**

**_Ava Miranda Dakedavra_**


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